Absa Bank Limited is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of approximately 850 ATMs and all related franchise agreements from the Bytes Managed Solutions division of Bytes Technology Group South Africa (Pty) Ltd (“Bytes”). Absa entered into an agreement with Bytes, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of JSE-listed Altron Group, to acquire the ATMs and related lease sites with effect from 1 August 2014.
Employees servicing these ATMs will remain in the employ of Bytes and no other part of Bytes’ ATM business will be affected.
Craig Bond, Chief Executive of Retail and Business Banking at Barclays Africa, says: “The acquisition will allow Absa to improve our customer experience as part of plans to reshape the branch network, optimise the ATM footprint and invest heavily in digital products and innovation. Absa has South Africa’s largest ATM network, and we will continue to expand this with new generation cash dispensing and accepting devices.”
Rob Abraham, Chief Executive Officer of Bytes Technology Group says: “The approach by Absa to purchase their branded ATMs and related franchise agreements, essentially a non-core activity for Bytes, fitted in well with our strategy of streamlining our business by focusing on core competencies and converged solutions.”
