26 Jul 2010 11:13
Guaranty Trust Bank Plc
Formal notification of an expression of interest to acquire shares of guaranty trust bank plc
We hereby notify you that Guaranty Trust Bank plc ("Bank") has received, and is giving serious consideration to a proposal ("Proposal") from the International Finance Corporation ("IFC"), an internationally rated AAA institution and the private sector arm of the World Bank.
The Proposal incorporates an offer to acquire new ordinary shares of the Bank ("Shares") by way of a placing to be effected under the provisions of the Investments and Securities Act No. 29, 2007 and the Rules and Regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission made pursuant thereto, with the objective of acquiring Shares of the Bank, up to the value of the Naira equivalent of US$30,000,000.00 (Thirty million United States Dollars) (hereinafter referred to as the "Placing"). The Proposal does not constitute a tender offer to purchase issued shares from existing shareholders of the Bank under the applicable securities legislation and regulations in Nigeria.
If approved by the Board of the Bank, necessary arrangements shall be made to present the Proposal for the consideration and approval of the Bank's shareholders at a duly convened general meeting. Subject to shareholder approvals being obtained, the Bank shall file formal applications with respect to the Placing as soon as practicable thereafter in full compliance with all the applicable regulatory requirements.
26 July 2010
Enquiries:
| GT Bank | Tel: +234 (1) 2714591 |
| Lola Odedina, Head of Communications |
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| College Hill | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7457 2020 |
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| Roddy Watt |
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| Antonia Coad |
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Notes to editors:
The Group operates as one of the leading Nigerian banks offering a wide range of financial services and products throughout Nigeria and in the West African sub-region. According to the most recently published audited financial statements of Nigerian banks prepared in accordance with Nigerian GAAP, among Tier 1 banks in Nigeria as identified by Agusto & Co., the Bank is the most profitable bank measured in terms of return on assets, the most efficient bank measured in terms of cost to income, has the second best asset quality measured in terms of non-performing loan ratio and, among all banks in Nigeria, the Bank is the sixth largest bank in terms of total assets.
Historically, the Group has focused its business on large- and medium-size corporate clients. However, the economic reforms that followed Nigeria's return to democracy in 1999 led to an increase in liquidity of retail customers and a corresponding increase in demand by such customers for banking services. As a consequence, since 2005, the Group has placed an increasing emphasis on building its retail business. Initially the Group targeted only high-end retail customers that were employed by large, reputable companies. Recently, the Group has re-branded itself to emphasise its retail focus, in particular its evolution as a bank with a nationwide network and focus on the provision of banking services to nearly all segments of the Nigerian economy.
The Bank has five banking subsidiaries established outside of Nigeria - Guaranty Trust Bank (Gambia) Ltd ("GTB Gambia"), Guaranty Trust Bank (Sierra Leone) Ltd ("GTB Sierra Leone"), Guaranty Trust Bank (Ghana) Ltd ("GTB Ghana"), Guaranty Trust Bank (Liberia) Ltd ("GTB Liberia") and Guaranty Trust Bank (United Kingdom) Ltd ("GTB UK"). The Bank services its customers from 183 branches in Nigeria, as well as other branches of its subsidiaries throughout the region.
The Bank also has five non-banking subsidiaries: Guaranty Trust Assurance Plc ("GTB Assurance"), which provides insurance services in Nigeria, GTB Registrars Limited ("GTB Registrars"), a securities registrar, GTHomes Limited ("GTHomes"), which provides mortgage services, GTB Asset Management Limited ("GTB Asset"), which provides asset management and other investment services and GTB Finance B.V. ("GTB Finance"), a finance subsidiary located in The Netherlands. In each of the past three years, profit from the Bank accounted for over 90.0% of the Group's total income.
www.gtbank.com