Nedbank's board has approved a formal plan to dispose of its investment in Ecobank Transnational, it said on Tuesday.
Nedbank CEO Jason Quinn said the board had approved a formal plan to dispose of its investment in ETI and it had been classified as a noncurrent asset held for sale in terms of IFRS 5. The group is engaging interested parties.
Nedbank bought 21% of Ecobank in 2014 for about $500m.
“This change represents a reset of our strategy on the rest of the continent with a clear focus on the Sadc and East Africa regions in businesses we own and control,” he said.
Ecobank has a presence in more than 30 countries, mainly in Central and West Africa. Under Quinn’s leadership, Nedbank is undergoing a refresh, with growth in Africa top of mind.
The company plans to leverage its assets to expand, strengthen and transform its presence in the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) region and East Africa, where economic growth is expected to be higher than SA.
Nedbank’s headline earnings rose 6% at the halfway stage of its financial year, driven by non-interest revenue and associate income growth.
The group said the first half was characterised by an ongoing improvement in the impairment charge and good management of underlying expenses, partially offset by muted net interest income (NII) growth.
Headline earnings rose to R8.399bn for the six months ended June from R7.911bn a year ago, which translated into headline earnings per share (HEPS) of 1,800c.
An interim dividend of 1,028c per share was declared, up from 971c a year ago.
Return on equity improved slightly to 15.2% from 15% before. Net interest income was up 2% at R21.18bn
The group said its financial performance was slightly ahead of guidance, with ongoing good strategic progress in a difficult trading environment.
Nedbank said on Tuesday that the organisational restructure of its Retail and Business Banking (RBB) and Nedbank Wealth clusters into a more focused, client-centred organisational design had been completed on time, as expected.
From July, Personal and Private Banking (PPB), an individual-focused cluster, would be providing a full suite of solutions to all individual clients across the youth, entry-level, middle, affluent and high-net-worth segments. Business and Commercial Banking (BCB), a juristic-focused cluster, will cover the SME, commercial and midcorp client segments.
“These changes have been well received by all stakeholders, including colleagues, clients and shareholders. Key leadership positions have been filled, and our efforts now shift to execution, unlocking transformational growth opportunities, as well as efficiency and productivity enhancements,” Quinn said.
The group also continued to make good progress on its strategic value unlocks. Digital volumes and values grew at double digits and digital sales reached 70%.
“Retail active and main-banked client gains were reasonable, with both growing at 6%; the Nedbank Africa Regions client base increased by 11%; and in a more competitive environment we retained our 24% market share among SME clients. Under strategic portfolio tilt we recorded market share gains in home loans, vehicle finance and retail and commercial deposits since December 2024,” Quinn said.
An increased focus on payments and insurance saw strong growth in product volumes. Lending that creates positive impacts and supports sustainable development finance in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals increased to R189bn, including strong growth in renewable energy exposures to R47bn, it added.
Quinn said the 30% tariffs on SA exports to the US, weaker global growth and sluggish commodity prices would be likely to undermine business confidence, hurt exports and discourage private sector fixed investment.
It forecasts GDP growth of 1.0% for 2025, followed by 1.5% in 2026, with downside risk.
On the back of the negative effect of a more difficult-than-expected SA environment on revenue growth and the change in its strategy on ETI, it has revised its 2025 guidance.
“We now expect DHEPS (diluted HEPS) growth for the year to be low single digits and ROE to end the period around 15%. From there we target an improvement in the group’s ROE to 17% in the medium term, supported by various growth initiatives and active capital management and offsetting the negative impact of ETI on ROE. In the long term our focus remains on achieving an ROE of more than 18%,” he said.
The group had previously said at the release of 2025 full-year results that it expected ROE to be greater than 16% in 2025.
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