The COMESA Competition Commission (CCC) has approved the proposed acquisition of National Bank of Kenya (NBK) from KCB Group by Nigeria's Access Bank.

The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) on July 22 and August 1 2024 submitted a request to CCC for the acquisition by Access Bank of all the issued share capital of NBK in line with regulations that regulate fair business practices in the region.

KCB Group acquired NBK some five years ago but has struggled the many issues it inherited including non-performing loans and significant capital constrains.

"The Commission has reviewed the request made by CAK as well as submissions by the merging parties and has resolved that the referral request is justifiable..." said CCC in a statement dated August 12 2024.

Aside from Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) nod, the deal slated to take up to nine months to conclude required approval by CAK and the CCC.

The Commission based in Lilongwe, Malawi began its operations on January 14 2013 to scrutinize mergers, investigate and adjudicate on competition and consumer issues and develop compliance strategies.

In the statement, the Commission noted that it shall retain jurisdiction over parts of the transactions relating to markets outside Kenya.

"The Commission thus hereby informs the public that, pursuant to article 24(9)(b) of the Regulations, the part of the transaction relating to the Kenyan market is hereby referred to CAK," it said.

Access Bank -one Nigeria's biggest lenders-- has been looking to expand its market share in Kenya after it acquired a 99.98 percent ownership stake in Transnational Bank in 2020.