Ecobank aims to grow Ivory Coast balance sheet by a Fifth

Ecobank aims to grow its balance sheet in Ivory Coast by nearly one fifth to 1,000 billion CFA francs ($1.70 billion) this year thanks to the West African country’s robust economic growth, Ecobank’s deputy CEO said on Friday.

 

“The balance sheet was 845 milliards CFA in 2014. We aim to reach 1,000 billion in 2015,” said Evelyne Tall said during the inauguration of a new country headquarters in Abidjan.

Tall said Ecobank’s subsidiary in Ivory Coast was the third most important in the 36 African countries in which it operates.

The pan-African lender reported a 144-percent rise in profits last year to N86.44 billion ($434.48 million) on revenues of N489.25 billion ($2.46 billion).

Tall said Ecobank would finance more small- and medium-sized companies in Ivory Coast, helping to fuel economic growth in the world’s largest cocoa producer.

Under the leadership of President Alassane Ouattara, Ivory Coast is recovering from a decade of political turmoil.

The government is investing heavily in infrastructure and is forecasting economic growth of 9.4 percent this year.