End of an era of pain for Nedbank

Nedbank has concluded the sale of its stake in Nigerian lender Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) to Bosquet Investments for R1.8 billion. 

The sale of the 21.2% stake has been approved by all requisite regulators, and the disposal was concluded on 17 December 2025. 

Nedbank said the disposal represents a reset of the bank’s strategy in Africa, with a clear focus on the Southern African Development Community and East Africa. 

The bank has also made it clear that its focus in Africa in future will be on businesses it owns and fully controls. 

Nedbank’s disposal comes with some pain for the South African lender, with it expected to result in its basic earnings per share declining by at least 20% when it reports results for the 2025 financial year. The bank said the disposal will not affect its headline earnings per share. 

It explained that the disposal will result in the cumulative foreign exchange losses and fair value adjustments, which amount to a R7 billion loss. This will impact the company’s bottom line. 

The sale marks the end of an era of pain for Nedbank, which initially pumped R6.3 billion into Ecobank and has not seen much in the way of rewards. 

In the bank’s most recent interim results presentation, CEO Jason Quinn admitted that the bank’s investment case did not materialise as expected. 

In particular, Quinn said that the performance of the Nigerian economy did not prove to be as strong as originally expected.

Operating in Nigeria also proved to be more difficult than initially anticipated, with Nedbank facing elevated regulatory uncertainty. 

Quinn bemoaned ongoing regulatory recapitalisation requirements at the bank’s interim results in early August, which created a scenario where Nedbank would have to inject capital to prevent its shareholding being diluted. 

“We wish to express our gratitude for the professionalism and integrity with which the board of directors of ETI have consistently conducted its affairs, and for the constructive engagement that has underpinned our relationship,” Quinn said. 

“The ETI board’s stewardship has played a pivotal role in navigating ETI through complex environments and in advancing its pan-African mandate.”

“The sale represents a reset of Nedbank’s strategy on the rest of the African continent with a clear focus on the SADC and East Africa regions in businesses Nedbank owns and controls, and areas where we can play to our strengths.”

Nedbank CFO Mike Davis went into more detail regarding the financial benefit of Nedbank’s stake in Ecobank during the interim results presentation. 

Davis showed that Nedbank initially invested R6.3 billion into Ecobank, with its market value now being a mere R1.9 billion. 

This sharp decline in the market value of Nedbank’s stake in Ecobank can be seen in the graph below.