Section 35, The Banking Act, 2019

(1) A person shall not directly or indirectly, alone or inconcert with one or more persons- 54 55 Maintenance of liquid assets. Local asset. Reporting of Group structures Acquisition, sale, disposal, or merger. (a) acquire significant shares in a bank or (b) hold or increase ownership interest in a bank or financial holding company in excess of 5% or such amount as may be prescribed by the Central Bank; (c) sell or dispose of any shares in a bank or financial holding company to any other person; or (d) enter into an agreement or arrangement which will result in a change in the control of a bank or financial holding company, without the prior written approval of the Central Bank. (2) A bank or financial holding company shall not enter into any arrangement or agreement that would result in - (a) the merger or restructuring of the bank or (b) a change in controlling interest of a bank or financial holding company;` (c) the sale or disposal by merger of its business of banking or any proposal for reconstruction; (d) the establishment or acquisition of a subsidiary or of any other mode of operation in or outside Sierra Leone, without prior written approval from the Central Bank. (3) A bank or financial holding company shall, for the purposes of obtaining an approval under subsection (2), submit a written application to the Central Bank. (4) The Central Bank shall, in determining whether or not to grant an application for approval of a bank or financial holding company to enter into an arrangement or agreement under subsection (2), consider - (a) whether the transaction is in compliance with this Act; (b) whether the transaction is in the public interest; (c) the impact of the transaction on financial and managerial resources and the future prospect of the bank or financial holding company; (d) the impact of the transaction on the functioning and stability of the overall financial system and the conduct of effective supervision. (5) The Central Bank shall notify the applicant under subsection (3) in writing of its decision to grant or refuse the application within 60 days after receipt of the application and where additional information is required by the Central Bank, the time for notification of decision to the application may be extended by 21 days. . (6) Where the Central Bank is satisfied that a person is in contravention of subsection (2), it may annul the transfer, sale, merger or reconstruction of the bank or financial holding company. (7) In addition to powers under subsection (5) the Central Bank may suspend voting rights, prevent the distribution of dividends or terminate the exercise of pre-emptive rights.