Ecobank Kenya Ltd is expanding its network for the first time since Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) acquired a majority shareholding in the formerly family-owned EABS Bank mid this year.

The Lome-headquartered pan-African bank launched its operations in the country on June 16 after it acquired a 75 per cent stake in EABS Bank and renamed it Ecobank Kenya.

Mr Philip Ikeazor, Ecobank Kenya’s managing director, said the bank will be opening four branches next month under an expansion programme that will see it opening a total of 18 new branches during the year.

The programme, which begins with the opening of branches in Kitale, Kisii, Nairobi’s Industrial Area and Westlands, will substantially increase the bank’s network from the current eight branches -four in Nairobi and one each in Mombasa, Kisumu, Thika and Eldoret.

“We have consolidated our operations since we set up our operations in Kenya and now we want to grow it,” said Mr Ikeazor.

This will take the bank’s operations to Nakuru, Nyeri, Karatina and Embu, among other towns.

“Besides recruiting new talent, we have also finished upgrading our IT (information technology) system,” he said on Tuesday evening at the bank’s Fedha Towers headquarters during a luncheon he hosted for the media.

Flanked by executive director Michael Monari, he said the Kenyan operation is now fully linked to ETI’s $40 million (Sh3.1 billion) International Technology and Shared Service Centre in Accra, Ghana.

The link enables the bank to provide automatic transaction processing on a 24/7 basis to the transnational’s network in 25 countries and over 500 branches across Africa.

On the proposed foray into the stock market business, the MD said they have approached a number of stock brokerage firms registered with the Nairobi Stock Exchange, but they have not made much headway.

“But officials of our investment bank, the Ecobank Development Corporation, will continue working on the matter,” he said.