PROPARCO and Ecobank Sign a U.S.$ 50m Loan Agreement

2 December 2013
Content from a Premium Partner
Ecobank (Lome)
press release

PROPARCO and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), the holding company of Ecobank Group, today announced the signing of a USD 50m loan agreement with a 10-year maturity. Ecobank was founded in 1985 and is today the largest pan-African banking group by number of locations, operating in 35 countries.

The group is a full-service bank providing wholesale, retail, investment and transaction banking services and products to governments, financial institutions, multinationals, international organizations, medium, small and micro businesses and individuals. It is listed on three West African stock exchanges and currently has over 1,200 branches and 19,000 employees.

This transaction has taken place against a background of fundamental changes in Africa’s banking sector. Pan-African banking groups such as Ecobank are developing alongside traditional players and are entering new market segments, targeting those previously excluded from the banking system. They are opening more branches and are providing innovative and low-cost services tailored to communities who lack access to banking services. These groups are driven by economic growth, which is gathering pace in Africa, and their activity is increasing steadily.

PROPARCO’s loan will allow Ecobank to strengthen its long-term resources and will support the development of its local banking network. Indeed, the Group has become the first pan- African banking group to have an integrated regional banking network in sub-Saharan Africa.

PROPARCO is an active player in banking consolidation in the region and will allow Ecobank to strengthen its operational capacities and its role in developing the local economic base, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.

ECOBANK. Incorporated in Lomé, Togo, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) is the parent company of the leading independent pan-African banking group, Ecobank. It currently has a presence in 35 African countries, namely: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Democratic Republic), Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Group is also represented in France through its affiliate EBI SA in Paris. ETI also has representative offices in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, London, UK and Beijing, China. ETI is listed on the stock exchanges in Lagos, Accra, and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) – the BRVM. The Group has more than 600,000 local and international institutional and individual shareholders. The Group employs 19,200 people from 40 different countries in 1,250 branches and offices. Ecobank is a full-service bank providing wholesale, retail, investment and transaction banking services and products to governments, financial institutions, multinationals, international organizations, medium, small and micro businesses and individuals. Additional information may be found at http://www.ecobank.com.

PROPARCO is a Development Finance Institution jointly held by Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and public and private shareholders from the North and South. Its mission is to catalyze private investment in emerging and developing countries with the aim of supporting growth, sustainable development and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). PROPARCO finances investments that are economically viable, socially equitable, environmentally sustainable and financially profitable. PROPARCO is one of the main bilateral development finance institutions in the world. It invests on four continents encompassing the major emerging countries and the poorest countries, particularly in Africa, and has a high level of requirements in terms of social and environmental responsibility. www.proparco.fr

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