Johannesburg | Thursday 10.30am.
Nedcor Bank acquired a 26.2 percent stake in IT firm Applied Technology Holdings Ltd, taking a further step in its information technology expansion strategy.
Nedcor, one of South Africa’s four biggest commercial banks, said it was taking the stake to reap the benefits of spreading the use of smart-cards and would have an option to increase its R114 million holding to 50 percent in two years.
”The deal gives Nedcor access to Aplitec’s smart card technology which, is especially suited to supplying secure, low-cost financial services to South Africa’s unbanked and underserved markets,” said Barry Hore, Nedcor executive director of technology and operations.
Nedcor, said it will focus on IT expansion in the wake of the government’s decision last month to block its hostile takeover bid for rival Standard Bank.
It had acquired the Aplitec stake at a price of R2.00 per share through a combination of purchases from current shareholders and a new share issue.
The transactions were subject to approval from shareholders and regulatory authorities.
Nedcor is also taking a 20 percent stake in Internet Solution — the dominant player in the country’s domestic corporate Internet access market — from Dimension Data. -REUTERS