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Having previously served as group chief executive of Barclays Plc, Bob Diamond is no stranger to the realities of doing business in emerging markets, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. With large global banks facing increasing regulatory and commercial pressures, several are looking to divest their assets in Africa. For Bob Diamond, this has provided a clear opportunity to create a financial services group to participate in industry consolidation and serve as a catalyst for stimulating and accelerating economic growth.
Since Mr. Diamond founded Atlas Mara with Ashish J.Thakkar in late 2013, Atlas Mara has acquired, by way of four transactions, control of banking operations in seven Sub-Saharan African countries, including Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Rwanda and Nigeria, several of which rank amongst the fastest growing economies in the world.
His vision is to create Sub-Saharan Africa’s premier financial institution. According to the World Bank, just 34 percent of African adults have bank accounts, compared with 94 percent in developed countries. “We plan to be a positive disruptive force in Sub-Saharan African financial services. Atlas Mara is the perfect intersection of doing good and doing well.”
A seasoned investment banker, Bob Diamond started his career as a university lecturer. His first taste of investment banking came when he joined Morgan Stanley as a bond trader in 1979. Mr. Diamond joined Barclays in 1996 and became head of its investment banking division, Barclays Capital, whose large profits were instrumental in the bank avoiding the need for a state bailout during the credit crunch.
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