Obama boon for BancABC's parent

Atlas Mara, the parent company of pan-African banking group BancABC, has secured $200 million from a US government development finance institution (DFI), a culmination of President Barack Obama's historic trip to Africa.

Last month, Obama visited Kenya and Ethiopia in a historic trip to the continent.

Last year, Atlas Mara  co-founded by ex-Barclays Plc chief executive officer Bob Diamond and billionaire entrepreneur Ashish Thakkar bought a controlling shareholding in BanABC which has operations in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique and Tanzania.

Atlas Mara also has operations in Rwanda and Nigeria and wants to establish a premier financial services group in sub-Saharan Africa.