Absa closes in on a deal that would reshape Tanzania’s banking sector, merging its two local units into the country’s third largest lender.
Absa Group is nearing an agreement to combine its two banking businesses in Tanzania, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the talks remain private. The South African lender wants to build scale in East Africa, a region growing faster than its home market. So it is consolidating rather than expanding through new licenses.
How the deal would work
National Bank of Commerce, which Absa owns 55% of alongside a 30% stake held by the Tanzanian government, would absorb the assets of Absa Bank Tanzania, a business Absa owns outright. Once combined, the new entity would hold roughly $3 billion in assets. That places it behind only CRDB Bank and NMB Bank, making it Tanzania’s third largest lender.
Absa declined to comment when asked about the plan. People familiar with the discussions say the bank has been talking with the government for some time, and a final agreement could emerge within months. Nothing is locked in yet, though. Regulatory sign off from the Bank of Tanzania would still be required, and the people cautioned that a deal is not guaranteed.
Part of a broader East African push
Tanzania is only one piece of a larger strategy. Absa also launched a tender offer in June to lift its stake in Absa Bank Kenya from 68.5% to 85%, worth about $239 million, as it looks to capture more of the earnings from a market that already generates close to a fifth of the profit produced by its Africa Regions division.
In Uganda, Absa received central bank approval in June to take over Standard Chartered’s wealth and retail banking business, a deal first agreed in October 2025. That transaction forms part of Standard Chartered’s wider retreat from consumer banking in Botswana, Uganda and Zambia, as it redirects capital toward corporate and institutional clients instead.
Tanzania’s banking sector has also been consolidating on its own terms, with regulators pushing lenders toward stronger capital positions. A combined NBC and Absa Bank Tanzania would need less duplicated infrastructure, and it could pool branch networks, technology platforms and treasury operations to compete more effectively with CRDB and NMB.
