African Export–Import Bank, also referred to as Afreximbank or Banque Africaine d’Import-Export, is a pan-African supranational multilateral financial institution created in 1993 under the auspices of the African Development Bank. It was officially launched at the first general meeting of the shareholders in Abuja, Nigeria, in October 1993. It is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt. Afreximbank is a financial provider to African governments and private businesses in support of inter-African[2] and Caribbean trade.[3]
Mission
Its mission is: “To stimulate a consistent expansion, diversification, and development of African trade while operating as a first-class, profit-oriented, socially responsible financial institution and a center of excellence in African trade matters”.[4]
Afreximbank's mandate is to finance and promote intra- and extra-African trade using three broad services:[2]
Afreximbank has 50 African member countries. As of June 2020, the bank had four regional locations and was in the final stages of establishing a fifth regional office for Central Africa.[5][6]
As of December 2022, Afreximbank had five regional offices, as follows:
In August 2023 Afreximbank also officially opened a Representative Office on the island of Barbados in the Caribbean.[11][12]
History
Afreximbank was established in 1993 to play the role of Africa’s Exim Bank to promote and finance extra- and intra-African trade.[13] The Agreement establishing the Bank and the Bank’s Charter were adopted at the constituent general assembly meeting of the Bank held at the AfDB headquarters in Abidjan on May 8, 1993. All the countries wishing to become participating states in the Bank signed the Agreement. In addition, states that wanted to become shareholders signed the Charter. The Bank Agreement confers on the Bank the status of an international organization with full juridical personality under the laws of participating states. Under the Agreement, participating states grant to the Bank, in their territories, certain immunities, exemptions, privileges, and concessions to facilitate the Bank’s business in those territories.
The Bank was subsequently launched in October 1993, when the first General Meeting of Shareholders took place in Abuja. Mr. Christopher Edordu was appointed the first President of the Bank. Afreximbank began operations in 1994 and concluded its first deal that year by participating in a $150 million syndicated loan to the Cocoa Board of Ghana, to which it contributed $6.5 million.[citation needed]
Since its creation in 1993, Afreximbank has championed the process of economic integration in Africa by directly financing the growth of intra-African trade, investing in trade facilitation, expanding trade-enabling infrastructure, and developing technological ecosystems to vault decades-old barriers to intra-African trade and investments.[13]
At the end of 2022, Afreximbank’s total assets and guarantees stood at US$31.10 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$5.21 billion. It disbursed more than US$51 billion to support African economies between 2016 and 2021. In addition, from 2020 to 2022, the Bank disbursed about $50 billion on a revolving basis to support African countries in containing the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis, as well as support economic recovery across the continent.[14]
Afreximbank charter
The Afreximbank charter was adopted in Abuja, Nigeria, in October 1993, and its provisions regulate the bank as a corporate body.
Afreximbank works with African and non-African export credit agencies, development finance institutions, commercial banks, and other multilateral institutions to support trade finance activities in Africa.
Afreximbank began with an authorised share capital of US$750 million in 1993, but the authorized share capital of the bank was increased to US$5 billion on December 8, 2012. On October 28, 2021, Afreximbank announced that it had embarked on a US$6.5 billion General Capital Increase (of which US$2.6 billion would be paid-in) to expand its capacity to deliver on its core mandate and diversify its range of services.[15]
Shareholding structure
As of May 2018[update],the bank's shareholders, totaling 146, were divided into four categories:[16][17]
Class "A" Shareholders - African governments, African continental, regional, and sub-regional institutions, and economic zones.
Class "B" Shareholders - African Private Investors and African National financial institutions.
Class "C" Shareholders - international financial institutions and economic organizations, non-regional financial institutions, and non-African Private Investors.
Class "D" Shareholders - created in December 2012 and open to subscription by any investor, African or non-African.[18]
Governance
The General Meeting of Shareholders is Afreximbank’s highest decision-making body. The General Meeting of shareholders, through the respective share classes, elects the members of the Bank’s Board of Directors and appoints the President of the Bank upon the recommendation of the Board of Directors.
In line with the provisions of the Charter, the Board of Directors is responsible for the general conduct of the business of Afreximbank . The day-to-day business of the Bank is delegated to the President who is also the Chairman of the Board of Directors. Under the Charter, the President is the chief executive and legal representative of the Bank.
Professor Benedict Okechukwu Oramah, a Nigerian national, is the third President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, having been appointed to that position at the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on 13 June 2015 ,for his first five-year term. He subsequently took his oath of office on 1 September 2015.[19] On 13 June 2020, Oramah was reappointed by the Bank’s shareholders for a second five-year term as President and Chairman of the Board of Directors.[20][21]
Oramah was preceded in office by Jean-Louis Ekra, who served from 2005 to 2015 and who, in turn, succeeded Christopher Edordu, the pioneer President who was in office from 1993 to 2005.
Recent developments
The 23rd Annual General Meeting of the bank's shareholders was held from July 18 to 24, 2016 in the Seychelles.[22] This meeting was the first chaired by President Dr. Benedict Oramah. The 30th Annual General Meeting was held in Accra, Ghana, from June 18–21, 2023[23][24][25][26]
Afreximbank postpones planned initial public offering (IPO)
In October 2019, Afreximbank postponed its planned IPO, valued at US$250 million at the London Stock Exchange, citing ‘unfavourable market conditions’.[27]
MANSA
Afreximbank has partnered with the African Development Bank, African Central Banks, and other international and national strategic partners to launch MANSA, a collaborative CDD/KYC information repository platform with a special emphasis on African financial institutions and corporate to enable global institutions, partners and counter-parties to access African entities’ CDD profiles and information as well as leverage the platform to conduct customer due diligence on African entities; financial institutions, corporate and SME.[28]
Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS)
Afreximbank partnered with the African Union to launch the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, a real-time gross settlement system for cross-border payments in local currencies.[29]
Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA)
Afreximbank provided an initial sum of US$100 million for FEDA’s full operationalization.[30] Its headquarters is in Kigali, Rwanda.
African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE)
Afreximbank commenced the construction of its African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE) project in Abuja, Nigeria. It will provide excellent healthcare to both low and high-income patient groups across the continent.[31]
Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF)
The Afreximbank, in collaboration with the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat and the Ministry of Trade & Industry of Egypt hosted a high-level business roadshow, ahead of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF 2023).[32]
Africa Quality Assurance Centre (AQAC)
Afreximbank has launched the first in its series of African Quality Assurance Centres (AQAC) being set up in Nigeria, to ensure the production and export of quality agro-produce from the country.[33]
