Absa marks milestone in uncoupling from Barclays

ONE OF Africa’s largest financial services providers, Absa, said yesterday it was celebrating the substantial completion of its separation programme from Barclays, three years after the start.

The separation follows Barclays’ decision in 2016 to reduce its shareholding in the company to a minority position, having become the majority shareholder in 2005.

Yesterday, Absa said 270 projects had been delivered as part of the uncoupling, while six projects would be concluded in the next few months.

The detachment from Barclays required the replacement or rebranding of millions of assets in 12 countries, including technology solutions, and involved the largest single data and system migration in Africa as customers in nine countries were switched to a new online banking platform.

“We are closing an important chapter in the more-than-100-year history of the Absa group as we wind up the last few elements of separation,” group chief executive Daniel Mminele said

“We emerge from this chapter as a proudly independent African bank, strengthened and enriched by our experience as part of the UK group.”

Barclays contributed R12.6 billion in 2017 towards the three-year separation programme, which comprised mainly information technology and brand projects.

More than 1 000 branches, 10 000 automated teller machines, close to 16 000 email addresses, several million customer cards, as well as thousands of uniforms, signage, forms, buildings and stationery were rebranded.

Absa engineering services head Paul O’flaherty, who has led the separation programme, said the bank had worked closely with stakeholders, including regulators to mitigate risk.

“We are proud to say that separation has been substantially completed in a safe and successful way,” he added.