Increasing the financing capacity of the banking sector in Burkina Faso

SGBF came into being with the takeover by Société Générale in 1998 of BFCI (Banque pour le Financement du Commerce et des Investissements au Burkina), a State-owned bank. By construction, it focuses very much on a corporate client base, with 66% of its portfolio dedicated to companies (including 31% for SMEs). Since 2011, it has extensively developed its network of agencies and its retail banking activity for private and professional clients. The number of branches rose from 8 in 2011 to 20 in June 2015. It aims to open 11 others over the next two years. It is directly owned by Société Générale (47.6%) and SGBCI (5%). It has a universal banking activity and provides a wide range of services to companies, SMEs and private clients. It is the 4th largest out of the country's 13 banks and plays a major role in financing the country's economy, particularly the construction, telecoms, energy and trading sectors.

The project involves a EUR 15m senior credit line to finance the medium and long-term activities of Société Générale Burkina Faso (SGBF). This credit line compensates for the highly limited range of long-term financing in Burkina Faso.

This operation is supporting SGBF's corporate lending activity, which focuses heavily on the construction, telecoms, energy and trade sectors. This requires medium and long-term financing, which are today scarce on the market. This operation has a high level of subsidiarity and will lead to a mobilization of savings, the diversification of the sector (by offering innovative products to its clients), and the diversification of loan products in Burkina Faso.