Farmers Review Africa Sept/Oct 2018 FRA - September - October 2018 digital 5 | Page 6

NEWS
the agricultural sector is an important
component in the agriculture value
chain and can greatly contribute to
food security,” said Dr Daniel Matjila,
CEO of PIC.
GroCapital and UNIGRO will benefit
from an expanded product suite
including savings, transaction and
electronic banking and commercial
loans. UNIGRO will be able to assess
the feasibility of innovative offerings to
service under-banked rural farmers, as
an example.
This is in addition to including deposits
and debit and credit cards. Experience
and existing customer relationships
will be leveraged to the advantage of
growth in SABA’s balance sheet and
contribute to profitability by leveraging
GroCapital’s experience in commodity,
stock and debtor finance, bridging
facilities, invoice discounting, trade
finance and broking.
SABA was established and has been
operational in South Africa since
1947. The bank offers comprehensive
4 |September - October 2018
traditional business banking such as
lending, transactional banking and
treasury functions, as well as alliance,
business and international banking.
It is known for its focus on the
development of market-leading, niche
alliance transactional banking offerings
in partnership with businesses.
“The alliance banking offering is
extremely attractive and will benefit
our customers in the longer term,” said
Venter, going on to elaborate that the
alliance banking capabilities provide an
extended platform for financial services
innovation and partnerships.
“Key for SABA are the growth
opportunities that are presented by
the transaction, as well as the ability
to broaden our offering to our current
loyal customers.
Furthermore, the transaction
contributes towards stabilization of the
banking sector in South Africa and
the shareholding is being acquired by
investors that support South Africa
as an investment destination,” said
Spiro Georgopoulos, CEO of SABA.
“We aim to assist in growing the
current SABA business. Between the
two entities there are sufficient skills,
like-mindedness and financial services
offerings to achieve this,” added
Venter. He went on to say that current
SABA customers can be assured
that the current high levels of service
and products offered by SABA will
continue. AGH has given assurances
to protect existing depositors and
borrowers of SABA.
As lead-arranger of this transaction,
AGH will assume operational oversight
over the bank with the appointment
and secondment of an Integration
Officer responsible for the successful
implementation of the acquisition.
“The award of the license highlights
the growth potential of the banking
sector and offers employment
opportunities,” Venter said. “It
also presents possible investment
opportunities and the potential for
future fundraising.”