the bank for very small businesses and SMEs launches its activities in October

Tuesday 24th September 2024 05:26 PM

(Ecofin Agency) – Named Bank for Commerce and Entrepreneurship of Gabon (BCEG), it becomes the 8^e bank in the country, and has a capital of $29 million.

The Bank for Commerce and Entrepreneurship of Gabon (BCEG), the newest Gabonese bank, is expected to officially launch its activities next October, according to sources within the bank. Last June, it obtained a favorable opinion from the Central African Banking Commission (Cobac), the banking sector watchdog in CEMAC (Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Chad and the Central African Republic).

With a capital of 17 billion FCFA ($28.89 million), this bank, 100% owned by Gabonese institutions and private individuals, is dedicated to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and very small enterprises (VSEs), which constitute more than 80% of the economic fabric.

“Its main mission is to respond to their specific needs, in order to have a favorable and lasting impact on their entire ecosystem, made up of individuals and professionals,” indicate sources close to the bank. And to add : “by offering a diversified range of products and services specially designed to meet the needs of SMEs/SMIs as well as those of professionals and individuals, BCEG aspires to become a major catalyst for entrepreneurship and to promote financial inclusion across the country.”

BCEG aims to position itself as a key player in the country’s economic development, in order to contribute to improving the productivity and innovation of SMEs, and to stimulate the contribution of SMEs to the country’s economic development.

This credit institution also becomes the 8^e bank in the country, and the second bank currently controlled by national capital, alongside BGFIBank, the leader of the Gabonese market.

Next October, it will open its doors in the Estuaire province, before expanding to the rest of the country. By 2027, it aims to be present in all nine provinces of the country. This should contribute to increasing the banking rate which is 30% in Gabon, according to official data.