Equity Bank Enters Ethiopia, Ugandan customers benefit

By Francis Otucu

Equity Bank has set up a Commercial Representative Office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia as it prepares to commence operations.

Hassan Maalim has been appointed  as the Head of the Commercial Representative Office which will be based at Kazanchis-Addis Ababa Ethiopia.

The bank is expected to be fully operational in July this year.

Equity Group Chief Executive Dr. James Mwangi confirmed bank’s Ethiopia entry.

He said having completed Phase One of the bank’s expansion, the entry into Ethiopia is part of Equity’s  Phase Two expansion in pursuit of bank’s aspiration of being a Pan African Bank with presence in 10 African countries by the end of the year.

“This will enable the Bank to continue to scale up and unlock economies of scale especially in this era of digitization and virtualization of banking,” he said.

The entry of Equity Bank into Ethiopia, a country with a population of nearly 100 million people, follows Ethiopia’s government appointment of a privatization commission and the ongoing reforms which are aimed at promoting a growing private sector.

Ethiopia is now ranked as Africa’s fastest growing economy according to data from IMF.

Equity Bank has also entered Zambia and Mozampique while the Group is already controlling equity stakes in four banks operating in Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and Mozambique.

With the addition of Ethiopia, the Bank will now have operations in a regional market with a combined population of nearly 500 million people, including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan and DRC.

Dr. Mwangi said Maalim brings a wealth of experience having joined Equity Bank in 2005.

Maalim holds a Bachelor of Arts degree and an MBA in Finance.