Equity Group

Equity Group Holdings Limited (EGHL), formerly Equity Bank Group, is a financial services holding company based in the African Great Lakes region. EGHL's headquarters are in Nairobi, Kenya, with subsidiaries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo and a representative office in Ethiopia.

EGHL is the largest financial services conglomerate in East and Central Africa. As of September 2026, it had assets exceeding KSh 2.16 trillion (US$17 billion). The group has over 23.3 million customers in seven African Great Lakes countries, with KSh1.59 trillion (Approx. US$12.3 billion) in deposits.

History

Foundation and early years EGHL was founded in Kenya as the Equity Building Society (EBS) in October 1984. EBS was originally a provider of mortgage financing for customers in the low-income population. Due to its rural banking orientation, the promotion of agribusiness became a significant and strategic intervention by the bank. By September 2015, Equity Bank had more than 9.2 million customers. The Banker listed Equity Bank among the Top 1,000 Banks in the World with the highest return on assets in the African continent, generating a rate of 6.84 percent on assets deployed.

Corporate restructuring Prior to November 2014, Equity Bank was both a licensed bank and a holding company for its subsidiaries. On 31 October 2014, Equity Bank Group announced its intention to incorporate a new wholly owned subsidiary, Equity Bank Kenya Limited, to which it would transfer its Kenyan banking business, assets and liabilities. The rationale for the re-organization was that by converting Equity Bank into a non-trading holding company that owns both banking and non-banking subsidiary companies and provides strategic, brand, risk and talent management to its subsidiaries, the Group would be better placed to invest in and develop existing and new businesses as part of its third phase of growth and transformation. These resolutions were adopted during an extraordinary shareholders general meeting held on 24 November 2014, leading to the formation of Equity Bank Kenya Limited.

Regional expansion In September 2015, the group completed its acquisition of 79 percent of DR Congo-based ProCredit Bank Congo SARL from Procredit Group. This acquisition marked the group's entry into sub-Saharan Africa's third most populous country.

In September 2019, Equity Bank Group began talks to acquire a controlling stake in Banque Commerciale du Congo (BCDC), the second-largest commercial bank in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In August 2020, Equity Group Holdings paid US$95 million (approximately KES 10.2 billion) for a 66.5 percent ownership in BCDC.

On 30 December 2020, Equity Group Holdings received regulatory approval from the DRC government to merge Equity Bank Congo (EBC) and the Banque Commerciale du Congo (BCDC) into Equity BCDC. In November 2023, Equity BCDC reported a profit before taxation of KSh11.4 billion ($74 million) for the nine months ending September, making it the most profitable subsidiary of the group. This successful acquisition enabled EGHL to surpass the KSh 1 trillion balance sheet mark, making it the first bank in East and Central Africa to achieve that milestone.

Rwanda expansion On 14 June 2023, EGH publicly disclosed its entry into a binding term sheet for the acquisition of 91.93% of COGEBANQUE's issued shares from the Government of Rwanda, Rwanda Social Security Board, Sanlam Vie Plc, and Ms. Judith Mugirasoni.

On 3 January 2024, Equity Group Holdings PLC announced the merger of Cogebanque and Equity Bank Rwanda. The amalgamation, which followed the receipt of all corporate and regulatory approvals, marked a significant milestone in the ongoing strategic growth initiatives of EGH.

Rebranding and milestones In October 2019, the Group rebranded to Equity, eliminating the entity names the various subsidiaries previously carried such as Group, Bank, Insurance, or Investment Bank, thereby unifying the various brands according to the group MD and CEO, James Mwangi. This rebranding occurred as the Group commemorated its 35th anniversary.

In August 2021, EGHL became the second most capitalized corporate entity at the Nairobi Securities Exchange after reaching the KSh 200 billion market capitalization mark.

Ownership The stock of Equity Group Holdings Limited is traded on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, under the symbol: EQTY. On Thursday 18 June 2009, the Group's stock cross-listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange and started trading that day, under the symbol: EBL. As of March 2023, shareholding in the group's stock was as depicted in the table below;

+ Equity Group Holdings Limited stock ownershipRank Name of ownerPercentage ownership1.Arise BV of Norway and Netherlands12.762.Standard Chartered Nominees Non Resd A/C Ke117524.353Stanbic Nominees LTD A/C NR35301533.984James Njuguna Mwangi3.385.Equity Bank Employees' Share Ownership Plan3.08 6.Standard Chartered Kenya Nominees Ltd A/C KE004667 2.897.Fortress Highlands Limited 2.678.Aib Nominee A/C Solidus Holdings Ltd2.389.Standard Chartered Kenya Nominees Ltd A/C KE005073 2.3410.Standard Chartered Kenya Nominees Ltd A/C KE0025961.9511.Other shareholders 60.15 Total100.00

Board of directors The following are the board members of Equity Group Holdings Limited, as of September 2024. Prof. Isaac Macharia, Non-Executive Chairman James Mwangi, CBS, Group Managing Director & CEO Samwel Kirubi - Executive Director Dr. Edward Odundo - Non-Executive Director Dr. Evans Baiya - Non-Executive Director Vijay Gidoomal - Non-Executive Director Dr. Helen Gichohi - Non-Executive Director Jonas Mushosho - Non-Executive Director Lydia Ndirangu - Group Company Secretary Samwel Mwale – Non-Executive Director Clifford Sacks – Non-Executive Director

Member companies The companies that compose the Equity Group Holdings Limited include but are not limited to the following:

Equity Bank Kenya Limited – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – A commercial bank in Kenya, serving individuals and businesses. Equity Bank Rwanda Limited – Kigali, Rwanda – 100% shareholding – A commercial bank in Rwanda, serving both individuals and businesses. Equity Bank South Sudan Limited – Juba, South Sudan – 100% shareholding – A commercial bank in South Sudan. Equity Bank Tanzania Limited – Dar es Salaam, Tanzania – 100% shareholding – A commercial bank in Tanzania. Equity Bank Uganda Limited – Kampala, Uganda – 100% shareholding – A commercial bank in Uganda. Equity BCDC – Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo : 77.5 percent shareholding – A commercial bank in DR Congo. Equity Consulting Group Limited – Nairobi, Kenya Equity Insurance Agency Limited – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – The insurance agency arm of the group. Offering bancassurance services to customers Equity Nominees Limited – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – A Nominee company. Holding investments on behalf of customers. Equity Investment Bank Limited – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – An investment bank in Kenya. A member of the Nairobi Securities Exchange and licensed by the Capital Markets Authority. Finserve Africa Limited – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in Kenya. Equity Group Foundation – Nairobi, Kenya – 100% shareholding – The philanthropy and corporate social responsibility arm of the group. Azenia - Nairobi, Kenya—100% shareholding – A technological affiliate for developing digital solutions to the group.

Equity Group

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