Skip to main content

[AfricaRealities.com] Rwanda : Sale of Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR) to Atlas Mara Ltd and merger with BRD Commercial Bank finalized.

 


Atlas Mara's equity stake in BPR and BRD commercial to 'boost financial inclusion'

photo

John F. Vitalo, Atlas Mara chief executive (L), chats with Minister Gatete in Kigali yesterday. (Timothy Kisambira)

The sale of Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR) equity stake to Atlas Mara Ltd and merger with BRD Commercial will boost financial inclusion and enhance stability in the banking sector, the Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Claver Gatete, has said.

Atlas Mara has invested more than $20.4 million (about Rwf15.3 billion) in BPR and merged it with BRD Commercial Bank Ltd, part of Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD), acquired by sub-Saharan financial services, Mara Group in 2014.

1452197903gatete
Anand (L), with Minister Gatete at the event in Kigali yesterday.  Timothy Kisambira. 

The integration was officially launched yesterday in Kigali.

According to minister Gatete, this makes BPR the second largest financial service bank in the country, and is expected to add value to the country's financial sector.

Speaking at the official launch of the integration exercise in Kigali, yesterday, Gatete urged financial market players to improve service delivery and invest more resources to help boost financial inclusion and drive the country towards a cashless based economy.

1452197726rwa1
Ben Christiaanse( L) chats with John Rwangombwa at the event in Kigali yesterday.

John Rwangombwa, the Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR), said the merger brings with it new innovative technologies critical for the stability of the financial sector.

"The country's financial sector is already doing well with growth rate of more than 14 per cent and 42 per cent in terms of profitability; therefore, we are confident that this merger will only improve the numbers," Rwangombwa re-assured.

John Vitalo, the chief executive officer, Atlas Mara, said the merger is in line with the Group's vision of building Africa and specifically, Rwanda's financial sector to help fast track economic development.

1452197775rw2
Guests chat after a group photo at the event in Kigali yesterday.

"The overall objective is to support Rwanda's ieffort to become a hub for financial services in East Africa," Vitalo noted.

Atlas Mara is expected to invest some $21 million (about Rwf15 billion) into the bank and hold a majority stake in the financial institution of about 62 per cent.

Vitalo added that the Group is confident the deal makes it possible for customers to greatly benefit from enhanced capital base, enlarge distribution network and expanded capabilities of the institution.

1452197802rw3
Guests pose for the camera at the event in Kigali yesterday. (All photos by Timothy Kisambira)

New CEO appointed

Meanwhile, Sanjeev Anand, the former I$M Bank boss, was appointed the CEO of the institution.

He replaces Ephraim Turahirwa, who has been BPR's chief executive officer for the past three years.

About Atlas Mara

The banking group has so far invested more than $700 million in more than seven countries in Africa.

The bank was listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2013.

It also seeks to create a sub- Saharan Africa premier financial services institution through a combination of its experience and access to capital, liquidity and funding, it says.

On October 2015, Atlas Mara acquired 100 per cent of the voting shares of BRD's commercial operations forming what is known today as BRD Commercial Bank.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw


###
"Hate Cannot Drive Out Hate. Only Love Can Do That", Dr. Martin Luther King.
###

__._,_.___

Posted by: Nzinink <nzinink@yahoo.com>
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (1)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.
I have loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore I die in exile.
The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.
When the white man came we had the land and they had the bibles; now they have the land and we have the bibles.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Voice of the Poor, the Weak and Powerless.

-----------------------------------------------------------
Post message:  AfricaRealities@yahoogroups.com
Subscribe: AfricaRealities-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Unsubscribe: AfricaRealities-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
List owner: AfricaRealities-owner@yahoogroups.com
__________________________________________________________________

Please consider the environment before printing this email or any attachments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-http://www.africarealities.com/

-https://www.facebook.com/africarealities

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Find  Friends in Africa:
http://www.africanaffection.com
http://www.datinginafrica.com/
http://www.foraha.net
https://www.facebook.com/onlinedatinginafrica

.

__,_._,___

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

OIF : Louise Mushikiwabo, une candidature embarrassante pour un troisième mandat de trop

C'était en novembre 2025, à Kigali. En marge de la 46e Conférence ministérielle de la Francophonie, Louise Mushikiwabo prenait la parole avec l'assurance de celle qui n'a rien à craindre : de nombreux pays, affirmait-elle, lui avaient demandé de se représenter. Spontanément. Naturellement. Unanimement presque. Sauf que les faits racontent une tout autre histoire. L'annonce qui ne devait pas avoir lieu si tôt Novembre 2025. Le Centre de Conventions de Kigali accueille plus de 400 délégués des 90 États membres de l'Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. Le thème officiel porte sur les femmes et l'égalité des genres, trente ans après Pékin. Mais en marge des séances plénières, c'est une autre affaire qui agite les couloirs : Louise Mushikiwabo vient d'annoncer qu'elle souhaite briguer un troisième mandat. L'annonce est prématurée. Délibérément. Les candidatures ne ferment qu'en avril 2026. Aucun autre pays n'a encore ...

Pourquoi les sanctions américaines ne fonctionnent pas contre le Rwanda

Pourquoi Paul Kagame a ignoré les sanctions américaines et la Résolution 2773 du Conseil de sécurité de l'ONU Entre février 2025 et mars 2026, le Trésor américain a imposé deux séries de sanctions ciblant directement la machine de guerre du Rwanda dans l'est du Congo : d'abord James Kabarebe, ministre d'État rwandais et principal intermédiaire du régime auprès du M23, puis les Forces de défense rwandaises en tant qu'entité, ainsi que quatre de leurs hauts responsables. Chacun des individus sanctionnés est demeuré en poste. Les FDR ne se sont pas retirées. Cette analyse examine pourquoi les mesures de Washington n'ont pas modifié la conduite du Rwanda — et pourquoi, selon les propres mots de Kagame, elles sont rejetées comme l'œuvre des « simplement stupides ».     Introduction : des sanctions sans conséquence La campagne de sanctions de Washington contre les opérations militaires du Rwanda dans l'est du Congo s'...

Paul Kagame: “We refuse to remove defensive measures"

Paul Kagame Refuses to Implement the Washington Accords and UN Security Council Resolution 2773: Analysis and Implications In an exclusive interview published on 3 April 2026, President Paul Kagame of Rwanda openly confirmed that Rwandan forces are deployed in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, rejected calls for their withdrawal, dismissed US sanctions as illegitimate, and signalled clear satisfaction with the current military status quo. This briefing examines what Kagame said, what his remarks mean for the Washington Accords, and what concrete steps the United States must now take if it wishes to restore credibility to its diplomacy in the Great Lakes region. Introduction: A Confession Wrapped in Grievance The interview, conducted by François Soudan and published in Jeune Afrique on 3 April 2026, is one of the most candid public statements Paul Kagame has made on Rwanda's military role in the DRC. Its significance does not lie in revealing something previously unknown. Th...

BBC News

Africanews

UNDP - Africa Job Vacancies

How We Made It In Africa – Insight into business in Africa

Migration Policy Institute