Zenith Bank Plc, Nigeria’s second-largest bank by asset, is executing a major strategic move to expand into East Africa with its planned aquisition of Kenya’s Paramount Bank.
According to reports, this move marks the bank’s first entry into the East African market. It is expected to reach completion by January 2026, pending th necessary regulatory approvals from both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).
While the official deal value remain undisclosed, the transaction offers Zenith a new entry into a market where its major Nigeria competitors, including UBA, GTBank, and Access Bank, have already established a significant presence.
Zenith Bank is entering the new market from a position of considerable financial strength. The bank recently conducted a robust hybrid capital raise, securing roughly N614,65 billion ($350.4 billion) via an oversubscribed rights issue and public offer.
This successful capital raise not only boosted the bank’s capital base by 160% but also allowed it to comfortably surpass the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) new minimum capital requirements for banks with international authorisatin well ahead of the March 2026 regulatory deadline
According to unaudied financial results for the nine months ended 30 September 2025, Zenith Bank recorded a healthy 16% year-on-year growth in gross earning rising from N2.9 trillion in Q3 2024 to N3.4 trillion in Q3 2025
If Zenith completes the acquisition, it will become the latest Nigerian bank to use Kenya’s consolidation moment to secure a strategic East African base.
Zenith already operates in Ghana, the UK, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia, and recently outlined expansion plans for Côte d’Ivoire and Kenya. “We were already an adult bank by the time we were seven, competing with banks that were 100 years old,” Henry Oroh, an executive director who has led several of Zenith’s international expansions, told The Africa Report in September.
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