Johannesburg - The Absa Group has received the regulatory approval to acquire Barclays Plc's African operations, clearing the final hurdle in the deal worth R18.3 billion.
Under the deal, Barclays will relinquish ownership of its African operations to Absa in exchange of a 62.3 percent shareholding of South Africa's third-largest lender.
Banking regulators in nine countries, including in Botswana and Kenya where Barclays has local listings, have given the deal the nod, Absa said in a statement.
The transaction excludes Barclays' businesses in Egypt and Zimbabwe due to volatile politics in those countries. -Reuters