British International Investment

Ecobank MRPA

AfricaFinancial services

Ecobank International (EBI SA) is the international subsidiary of the Togo-based Ecobank Group. The Ecobank Group has an extensive footprint and operations across 33 countries in Africa.

This investment was made when British International Investment was named CDC Group.

Our investment

Description of the investment.

We provided a $50 million risk sharing facility to Ecobank International (EBI SA), with the aim of diversifying and expanding trade across African markets, with a particular focus on francophone West Africa. The facility provides enhanced capacity to a bank which has the appetite for markets where our portfolio currently has limited coverage.

Impact information

Applies to investments made from 2019 onwards. The tabs in this section define what we expect to achieve through the investment, assessing the potential impact of the investment against six dimensions of impact. You can find more details on our methodology of assessing impact here.

What?

Impact
  • Sustained and potentially improved access to goods/services (SDG 2.1)
  • Sustained and potentially improved economic opportunities (SDG 8.1, 8.5, 8.10)

How?

Primary Secondary

Sustained and potentially improved access to goods and services

Sustained and potentially improved economic opportunities

Who?

Stakeholder Geography Characteristics
Customers

Pan African with an intended exposure of more than 50 per cent to 'Alpha' countries, including francophone West Africa.

It is fair to assume mass market characteristics and demographics of the respective geographies.

Employees

Pan African with an intended exposure of more than 50 per cent to 'Alpha' countries, including francophone West Africa.

It is fair to assume mass market characteristics and demographics of the respective geographies.

How much?

Scale Depth/Duration

We use the scale of the facility and enabled trades as a proxy. We intend for the commitment to enable an additional $70-$140 million trades per year.

  • Duration: Impact will occur over three years i.e. the lifecycle of the facility.
  • Depth: The World Bank recently adjusted growth projections for Africa from 2.4 per cent in 2019 to -2.1 to -5.1 per cent in 2020. As a result, impact is expected to be deeper in a context where the counterfactual has worsened (i.e. increasing unemployment; lower access to goods/services). Countries with smaller/less developed capital markets will feel the effects of COVID-19 more acutely than more developed markets.

Contribution/additionality

Contribution/additionality
  • Financial additionality: Financing is not available in sufficient quantity nor on the same terms, particularly in the current COVID-19 context. There is increased reduction of capital, making commercial investors less willing or able to support African banks

Grid score

Grid Score

To help us direct our investments, we previously used a tool called the Development Impact Grid. It scored investments out of four, based on two factors: the difficulty of investing in a country and the propensity of the sector to generate employment. This tool was used for investments until the end of 2021. Since 2022 it has been replaced by the Impact Score.

3.5-4.2

Environmental and social information

  • Environmental and social summary

    A high-level description of the environmental and social aspects of the investment. This may include a summary of key environmental and social risks identified during environmental and social due diligence (ESDD); key elements of an environmental and social action plan (ESAP); or ways in which we plan to support the investee improve environmental and social standards, such as through their environmental and social management system (ESMS); as well as any other priority areas agreed with the investee.

  • Environmental and social risk

    A risk category rating, which indicates the level of environmental and social risk associated with an investment. For an explanation of the categorisations used, see here. We consistently provide an environmental and social risk category for all investments screened from 2023 onwards.

Environmental and social summary

At the time of investment, Ecobank met our environmental and social (E&S) requirements for trade and supply chain finance. We will continue to monitor activities under our trade finance facility.

Reporting and Complaints Mechanism

The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism allows anyone outside BII to report alleged breaches of the business integrity or environmental and social provisions of BII’s Policy on Responsible Investing. This includes breaches made by BII, a BII investee, or a portfolio company of a fund in which BII has invested. The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism Rules are available here. Reports and complaints can be submitted by email to [email protected] or by mail. See more details on our Reporting and Complaints Mechanism here.

For any other general enquiries contact us at [email protected]

  • Key facts

    Last updated

    When the last quarterly update of the website database occurred.

    :
    June 2024
    Project number

    An identifier number shared by investments in the same project.

    :
    D3557
    Status

    The current status of the investment (green flag for active and red flag for exited).

    :
    Active
    Region

    The geographical region where the country is located. We currently invest in Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and the Caribbean. In 2023, BII’s investment mandate was extended allowing it to invest in regional funds linked to Ukraine, with the majority of activity expected to begin post-war. Investments outside these regions were made prior to 2012 under previous investment mandates.

    :
    Africa
    Country

    The countries where the investment delivers impact. Where impact is delivered in multiple countries, this is indicated.

    :
    Africa
    Sector

    We prioritise those sectors that facilitate development and need our capital the most. Our priority sectors contribute towards many of the Sustainable Development Goals. They range from investing in the power infrastructure that will provide people with better access to electricity, to investing in financial institutions that direct capital to the individuals and businesses that need it the most.

    :
    Financial services

    We provide capital in the following ways: directly – through direct equity, direct debt, guarantees and other non-intermediated financial instruments; and indirectly – principally through investment funds.

    For direct investments and fund investments, this is the date BII committed capital to the investments. This is typically the date on which legal agreements are signed by all parties.

    For the portfolio companies of our fund investments, this is the date (either the month or the quarter) on which the fund committed capital to the portfolio company.

    For direct equity investments, this is the date at which British International Investment exited the investment.

    For debt investments, this is the date at which the final debt repayment was made.

    For funds, this is the date at which the fund was terminated.

    For underlying fund investments, this is the date at which the fund manager exited the investment.

    The total amount committed, per financial instrument, per investment, on the date BII becomes subject to a binding legal obligation to provide funding or assume a contingent liability. This information is provided in US dollars.

    For direct investments, this is the amount that BII has committed to the business or project. For fund investments, this is the amount BII has committed to the fund.

    The currency in which the investment was made.

    Investment type :
    Guarantee
    Start date :
    April 2021
    Amount :
    $50m
    Currency of investment :
    EUR,USD
    Domicile

    The company or investment fund’s place of incorporation.

    :
    France

Subscribe to receive our latest news and updates