OPTIMISTIC
Allan Gray bets on Nigerian banks
Allan Gray, the largest manager of nongovernment investment funds in Africa, is betting on Nigeria’s banking industry despite poor performance by the oil companies it depends on and widespread calls for the naira to be further devalued. The investor was adding to its stakes in Lagos-based lenders Access Bank and Zenith Bank, Allan Gray chief investment officer Andrew Lapping said. He did not say how big the holdings were or how many shares his firm was buying. "We see a lot of value in Nigerian banks," Lapping said. "Most people think they’re all going to zero because of the bad debts. We think they will survive because high interest rates make the banks profitable and they have less debt to equity compared with European lenders," he said. Access Bank CEO Herbert Wigwe said last month the bank’s nonperforming loans were expected to climb to "slightly below" 3% of total loans by the end of 2017. That compared with 2.1% for the nine months through September. The banking industry is un...
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