• Ivory Coast adopted two draft laws to reform banking and microfinance regulations.
• The banking reform introduces Islamic finance, fintech companies and electronic money operations into the national legal framework.
• The microfinance reform strengthens governance, credit risk management and depositor protection mechanisms.

Ivory Coast launched a broad overhaul of regulations governing the banking and microfinance sectors after the government adopted two draft laws during a cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, April 29.

The reforms respectively target banking regulation and microfinance supervision as authorities seek to modernize the country’s financial framework and align it with changes in the regional market environment.

Banking Framework Opens to New Players

According to the cabinet statement, the draft banking law “introduces into the national banking sector Islamic finance, new actors such as financial technology companies including FinTechs, as well as new operations such as electronic money transactions, which are not covered by current legislation.”

The government said the reform integrates developments within the regional banking environment and reflects the rapid expansion of financial technologies, financial inclusion challenges and broader financing needs across the economy.

Accordingly, the draft law expands the scope of the national banking sector to cover new financial activities and market segments.

The government also aims to provide a legal basis for financial innovations already operating in the market while strengthening regulatory oversight.

In addition, authorities seek to support the emergence of new financial practices and diversify financial service offerings at a time when digital solutions play an increasingly important role in transactions and access to financing.

Microfinance Reform

The second draft law focuses on reforming the microfinance sector.

The Ivorian government said the text “introduces essential corrective measures to address governance issues within microfinance institutions, introduces new mechanisms for credit risk management and internal control, as well as information system management, in order to automatically generate reliable financial statements and contain the gradual deterioration in portfolio quality.” 

The reform also strengthens depositor protection mechanisms and introduces new procedures for handling distressed institutions. By accelerating intervention procedures and reinforcing supervisory tools, authorities aim to preserve sector stability. At the same time, the government seeks to restore confidence in a segment expected to play a growing role in financing households and small economic units.

Through the two draft laws, Ivory Coast aims to adapt its financial framework to evolving regional market conditions and strengthen the regulatory foundations needed to support new market participants amid the rapid transformation of financial services across West Africa.

Meanwhile, Islamic finance continues to expand in Ivory Coast through the diversification of products such as Ijara and Mourabaha and the deployment of instruments including Wakf. Coris Bank Baraka, the Islamic banking window of Coris Bank, remains among the players operating in the segment.

 Chamberline Moko