South African bank Absa Group said on Thursday it will buy Barclays African operations for 18.3 billion rand (KES 176.8 billion). This, a statement from Absa says, is a move to finalize a longstanding plan to fuse the two company businesses in Africa, considered a fast-growing market.

As a result of the KES 176.8 billion deal, Barclays Plc will raise its stake in Absa to 62.3% from the current 55.5%,  giving it tighter hold on South Africa's third-largest bank by value.

[READ: Barclays to Merge Africa Operations With ABSA]

The banks said in a joint statement the incorporation of Barclays African Operations would lead to a management shake-up at Absa, which would be renamed Barclays Africa Group. The deal covers Barclays' operations in Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia and the Barclays Africa Regional Office.

The creation of the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) structure by Barclays Bank saw the creation of the position of Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to which Adan Mohamed, current Barclays Managing Director for East and West Africa, has since been appointed as CAO for Barclays Africa.

“Adan's performance at Barclays Kenya fits the profile of the leadership we seek; to drive an ambitious Pan-African foray that touches the entire financial services spectrum as the leading financial services group in the continent.” Said Barclays Africa Chief Executive and Head of Africa Group Strategy Kennedy Bungane on Mohamed's appointment.

Absa will retain its brand for its retail and card business in South Africa and the bank says the new deal should be completed in the first half of next year.