Barclays Bank of Kenya (BBK) shareholders have approved the name change of the bank to Absa. The bank has until June 2020 to complete the process.
The name change approval took place at the bank’s 50th AGM that has held in Nairobi yesterday. It is set to be one of the biggest rebranding project to be done in Kenya in the financial service sector ever.
The name change was necessitated comes after UK’s Barclays PLC offloaded a large percentage of its majority share in Barclays Africa Group Limited. The two entities then agreed on a separation agreement which allows Barclays Africa Group Ltd the use of the Barclays brand in the African market until 2020.
The bank was quick to reassure customers that it will be business as usual even with the name change. According to them, they plan to continue offering the same value to customers as they always have. Barclays Bank Kenya MD Jeremy Awori added that the process will be carefully managed and aligned with all shareholder and regulatory requirements to ensure it is a seamless transition for all shareholders.
The MD also said that Awori said that the transition will come with a bigger focus on digital. The bank’s use of alternative channels that customers can access their services is at 20% and they want to build it further with digital. The bank will apparently seek to digitize more of its processes with an aim of cutting costs. According to Awori, automated processes have already reduced operational costs by 30%.