| dc.description.abstract | Increasing trade within the East African region is beginning to drive ever-increasing
demand and opportunities for businesses in this region, leading to expansion or reorganization
of Kenya-based banks in the region. Entry strategies are crucial to the
survival of new firms as they ensure that firms are moving on the correct track right
from the start without deviating from their goals. The selection of an appropriate
strategy in a foreign market can have significant and far reaching consequences on a
firm’s performance and survival. NIC Bank, one of large financial services provider is
pursuing regional expansion programme, a strategy to meet the ever increasing
demand for banking services in East Africa region. The study therefore sought to
identify strategies used by NIC Bank to enter the East African market. The procedures
for conducting the research are discussed in chapter three. The study was a case study
on NIC Bank. Primary data was collected using self-administered interview guides.
The target respondents were three senior managers of the bank in Kenya, Tanzania
and Uganda. The interview guide contained open-ended questions. The open-ended
questions enabled the researcher to collect qualitative data. Before processing the
responses, the completed interview guides were edited for completeness and
consistency. A content analysis was employed. Finally, the study reveals that NIC
Bank moved into the East African markets through FDI. However, there are a couple
of challenges facing the bank ranging from increased competition to corruption and
government bureaucracy especially in Tanzania. As part of the recommendation, the
research puts forward a necessity for thorough market analysis as a key step in the
process of selection of market entry strategies. The study also recommends further
research on other market entry strategies such as joint ventures adopted by other banks markets to enter other within the continent. | en |
