Barclays PLC Chief Executive Jes Staley has decided to shut the bank’s operations in Africa, the Financial Times said on Friday.

Staley will probably announce the decision on March 1 as he presents the company-wide review after the board agreed in principle that the business was no longer a strategic fit, said a source, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are still private.

The board has appointed a subcommittee to study how and when to sell Barclays Africa, the FT said. No comment was immediately available from Barclays. Staley’s review came after South African President Jacob Zuma decided to change his finance minister twice in less than a week at a time when the economy is under severe stress.

Barclays’ African business had $54 billion (Sh5.5 trillion) of assets on a risk-adjusted basis and made a profit of 791 million pounds (Sh111.6 billion) in the first nine months of this year, or 13 per cent of the bank’s core profits.

While Barclays Africa, formerly known as Absa Group, has historically been more profitable than the bank’s other three main divisions, it’s been hurt by the falling South African rand. The British lender owns a 62 per cent stake in Barclays Africa, which was built up under former CEOs John Varley and Robert Diamond.

Chief Executive Jeremy Awori yesterday fought off claims that Barclays Bank of Kenya could be up for sale. He termed reports that the Barclays Plc was seeking to exit the African operations as mere media speculation. “We don’t comment on market speculation. When Barclays Africa Group was formed in 2013 we created one of the biggest banking groups on the continent. We are a well-capitalised and independently funded business and control the African operations,” said Awori. Claims that Barclays Plc was reconsidering its business in Africa first emerged in December with reports that Staley was seeking to ‘refocus the bank on a narrower range of profitable activities’.

Earlier last month, Barclays Africa Group announced plans to shut down its regional management office in Nairobi, and shifting the operations to South Africa. The regional office will be closed in March, according to a statement issued by the group. An exit of Barclays PLC from the Kenyan outfit could mean its minority shareholders could be paired with a new investor.

—Standard Reporter, Reuters and Bloomberg