Barclays Bank Zambia’s #JourneytoAbsa
Barclays Bank Zambia has been part of the fabric of Zambia for over 100 years.
FROM
shades of blue to a wide spectrum of warm, vibrant reds, Zambians will soon notice a new colour for Barclays Bank Zambia PLC, as the Bank prepares to change its name to Absa.
The bank’s name change in Zambia is part of a broader, multi-country rebranding programme, scheduled to be completed by mid-2020.
“We are extremely proud to adopt the Absa brand in Zambia,” said Barclays Bank Zambia Managing Director Mzinga Melu.
Barclays Bank Zambia has started introducing Absa’s warm, vibrant red colour palette on some of its assets, including bank branches and ATMs, across the country. It recently launched its first Absa-branded branch at Lusaka’s Kabulonga Centro Mall. It will launch three Absa branches during October, Ms Melu recently said in Lusaka.
In 2018, the bank’s parent company, Absa Group Limited, announced a decision to rebrand all the operations across the continent to Absa. While Barclays continues to have a significant stake in Absa Group Limited, it is no longer the majority shareholder, and the Group has undergone a significant
We are extremely proud to adopt the Absa brand in Zambia - Ms Melu
separation process to detach its operations in Africa from those of Barclays PLC.
Parent company Absa Group has Absa-branded operations in South Africa, and Barclays-branded banks and other subsidiaries in Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and, of course, Barclays Bank Zambia. The Group also has representative offices in Nigeria and Namibia.
“Upon adopting the Absa name, the Bank will work to leverage its rich African heritage and drive relevant initiatives that can further unlock Zambia’s potential and support its accelerated growth,” said Ms Melu. Ms Melu explained that this fundamental change at parent company-level has given the Bank an opportunity to roll out a new, fresh brand that reflects its unique African identity.
She said it also gives the bank and all its sister operations the opportunity to unite behind a single brand and purpose.
Barclays Bank Zambia has been part of the fabric of Zambia for over 100 years.
We are embarking on a new chapter that is full of possibilities. We are looking forward to creating opportunities for our customers and communities to make their possibilities a reality and partner with them every step of the way. - Ms Melu
Its history in the country means that the bank has been an integral part of the growth of Zambia and its economy. The Bank has invested in crucial sectors of development of the national economy such as mining, trade, agriculture, infrastructure and investments among others.
Ms Melu, however, took pains to stress that there are still several legal and regulatory milestones to achieve before the Bank can announce its final changeover date to the public. Until then, the Bank will still be known as Barclays Bank Zambia.
“We are embarking on a new chapter that is full of possibilities. We are looking forward to creating opportunities for our customers and communities to make their possibilities a reality and partner with them every step of the way,” Ms Melu said.
Although the name change is a large-scale substantial project that affects almost every area of the business in some way, the Bank has said that it does not expect there to be any negative impact on its customers and it has planned the transition carefully, to ensure that customers do not have to do anything on their side. Absa Group has more than 10,000 cash dispensing machines (ATMs) and more than 1,000 branches across the continent.
“Products and services will work as usual, and the Bank will not ask for any personal information from its customers to effect the change. Customers can continue to bank with us as confidently as they always have. We are proud of the stable, reliable legacy that we have built up over the years, and will retain this beyond our name change,” said Ms Melu.
In fact, the Bank plans to only do better as it increasingly offers digitally led solutions and a new, refreshed banking experience in Zambia.
To give more information on the transitioning, Barclays Bank Zambia Retail Director, Harton Maliki, said the Bank undertook a project to neutralise the dominant blue in preparation for the change from Barclays to Absa.
“This process saw us work to neutralise the Barclays blue to a grey across the country as a foundation to start applying the vibrant new Absa colours. This also gave the Bank an opportunity to enhance the Bank’s infrastructure to serve our customers better going forward.
“So far, only five branches remain untouched because these will undergo complete refurbishments. We worked hard to ensure that there was minimal customer impact during this process,” says Mr Maliki.
During this hybrid period (in which Barclays and Absa brand will appear in-market) customers cards, cheque books will not change, and customers can continue to transact with their Barclays Cards until the Bank starts to replace them. This will only happen once the Bank legally changes its name.
Barclays Bank Zambia Director of Change Enablement, James Dowie, said updates will be provided to customers as changes were being made.
“Changing the brand from Barclays to Absa is a detailed and lengthy process, given the strength of the Barclays brand in Zambia. With our new look, we will aspire to be an entrepreneurial African banking group with global reach, one that makes a real and lasting contribution to its customers and the societies it operates in.”