Accra, June 17, GNA - Ecobank, the Pan African Bank, and Computershare, world's largest registry business on Tuesday announced an agreement to establish a joint venture company to provide shareholder Registry and custody services to clients in other countries in Africa, apart from South Africa. The joint venture company, to be known as Computershare Pan African, will initially offer registry services in the three markets where Ecobank is listed with the view to expanding across the growing African network. Ecobank is listed on the Nigeria, Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire Stock Exchanges.

Mr. Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank Group Executive Director of Operations, Technology, Transaction and Retail Bank and Mr Stan Lorge, Chief Executive Officer of Computershare's South African Office signed the agreement. Besides the registry business, the company will offer specialist value-added investor services, including Custody services aimed at facilitating participation by various corporate and individual investors in Africa's increasingly vibrant capital markets. "We are delighted to join our forces together in this profitable and fruitful partnership with Computershare," Group Chief Executive Arnold Ekpe said via a video link from Lome. He said customers would derive immense value from the registry and custodial services of the joint company, adding that, the venture was a demonstration of the commitment of Ecobank to build on strategic alliances to provide convenient, accessible and reliable services to customers. Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank Group Executive Director of Operations, Technology, Transaction and Retail Bank, said the new company would leverage on the bank's understanding and experience of the African markets and environment as well as its unique technology and shared services platform to discharge efficient registry and custodial services across the three stock exchanges. Mr. Stan Lorge, Chief Executive Officer of Computershare's South African Office, said an efficient registry and settlement system would "provide the big difference that most investors outside the continent are looking for." "In Ecobank, we have found the right partner with the local knowledge to complement our technical systems and expertise to provide the needed registry and custodial services that will contribute to the development of stock exchanges on the continent," Mr. Lorge said. Computershare is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of approximately US$4.8 billion.