Nairobi, March 21 -- Nigerian top lender, Access Bank Plc, will pay KCB Group about Sh13.2 billion to acquire National Bank of Kenya (NBK), even as the lender announced an eight per cent decline in its net profit on higher operating costs.

KCB Group chief executive Paul Russo said the lender has signed a binding agreement with Access in a deal that he hopes will be completed in the next six to nine months.

The deal will see Access pay multiples of 1.25 times the book value of NBK, which stood at Sh10.57 billion as at end of December 2023. This values the deal at about Sh13.2 billion even though the actual figure will be arrived at on the actual day of signing the sale deal.

"This transaction represents what we believe is a great opport...