What Happened to Intercontinental Bank Shares?
Intercontinental Bank was recapitalised by Access Bank in 2011 and merged into it in January 2012. Holders received 1 Access Bank share for every 4 Intercontinental shares. Here is how to trace them now.
Intercontinental Bank Plc was merged into Access Bank Plc under a scheme of merger sanctioned by the court on 23 January 2012. Intercontinental shareholders on the register at the end of the scheme were allotted 1 Access Bank share for every 4 Intercontinental Bank shares of 50 kobo each. Intercontinental's share capital was cancelled and the company was dissolved without being wound up. Those Access Bank shares have since been exchanged one for one into Access Holdings Plc shares.
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From CBN Intervention to Merger
Intercontinental Bank was one of the five banks whose chief executives the Central Bank of Nigeria removed in August 2009. In 2011 Access Bank agreed to recapitalise it, and the new capital greatly reduced the proportion of the bank owned by the shareholders from before the rescue. It was reported at the time that existing Intercontinental shareholders would end up with about five per cent of the combined bank. Access Bank bought the remaining 25 per cent stake it did not already hold in a transaction completed in January 2012, alongside the merger.
What Intercontinental Shareholders Received
- Ratio: 1 new Access Bank share for every 4 Intercontinental Bank ordinary shares of 50 kobo each held on the terminal date of the scheme.
- No cash: the scheme consideration for ordinary shareholders was shares, not cash.
- Timing: the court sanctioned the scheme on 23 January 2012, and Access Bank's 2011 annual report confirmed that the new shares had been issued and allotted.
- Later change: in 2022 Access Bank became a subsidiary of a new listed holding company, Access Holdings Plc, and each Access Bank share was exchanged for one Access Holdings share.
As an illustration of the arithmetic only, 10,000 Intercontinental shares on the register at the terminal date became 2,500 Access Bank shares, which became 2,500 Access Holdings shares in 2022, before counting any bonus or rights issues in between.
Who Holds the Records Now
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The successor shares are on the register of Access Holdings Plc. Its registrar, named in the company's 2025 annual general meeting notice, is Coronation Registrars Limited, previously called United Securities Limited, whose registrar pages are at coronation.ng. That is the place to ask what an Intercontinental holding became and whether dividends paid on the Access shares since 2012 are waiting to be claimed.
What an Old Intercontinental Certificate Means Today
The certificate no longer represents a share that exists or can be traded. It is evidence of a holding that the scheme converted into Access Bank shares. If the holder never had a CSCS account, the Access shares may still be held on the register in certificated form or in a registrar account rather than with a stockbroker. Either way, they are traceable through the registrar.
Two different things reduced the value of old Intercontinental holdings: the 2011 recapitalisation, which diluted existing shareholders, and the 1-for-4 exchange itself. Neither of them removed the holding. The shares that resulted should still be on the Access Holdings register.
What to Do Next
- Collect the Intercontinental Bank certificates, dividend warrants and rights allotment letters, and note the exact registered name and old addresses.
- Write to Coronation Registrars with copies, and ask for the Access Holdings holding that resulted and any unpaid dividends since 2012.
- Complete the registrar's identity and e-dividend mandate requirements.
- If you want the shares in a stockbroking account, arrange for them to be dematerialised and credited to your own CSCS account.
If you know there were Intercontinental shares but not what else is registered in the same name, a Find My Shares search checks across the registrars for ₦10,000. Found shares can be moved into your Shares Saver account free.
Start a Find My Shares searchFrequently Asked Questions
Were Intercontinental Bank shareholders wiped out?
No. Their holdings were diluted by the recapitalisation and then exchanged at 1 Access Bank share for every 4 Intercontinental shares, so they became Access Bank shareholders.
Is Intercontinental Bank the same company as Access Bank now?
Its business, assets and liabilities were transferred to Access Bank and Intercontinental Bank was dissolved. The listed company today is Access Holdings Plc, which owns Access Bank.
I have more Access Holdings shares than a quarter of my certificate. Why?
Bonus shares received on the Intercontinental holding before 2012, and any bonus or rights issues on the Access shares since, change the number. The registrar can give an account history.
Important disclaimer. This article is for general information and educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice, investment advice, or any recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. The value of investments can fall as well as rise. You should seek independent regulated financial advice before making any investment decision. Shares Saver does not provide financial advice.
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