Bob Diamond’s banking venture

The new African banking venture from the former Barclays boss has been met with a mixture of excitement and scepticism.

Bob Diamond's new African banking venture raised $325m when it listed on the stock market this week. The controversial former boss of Barclays has personally invested $16m in the cash shell, called Atlas Mara Co-Nvest.

Diamond co-founded the company with Ashish Thakkar, a 32-year-old billionaire with a wide range of business interests in Africa. Thakkar himself has invested $4m. The cash shell aims to buy a majority stake in an African bank within 12 months. If that doesn't happen, the money will be returned to shareholders.

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