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Afriland First Bank founded by Cameroonian businessman Paul Fokam is set to expand its footprint in Central Africa after receiving approval from the Central African Banking Commission (Cobac) to open new branches. The move follows a series of recent authorizations under a single-license framework designed to simplify cross-border banking in the region.
Cobac, the regulator for the six-nation CEMAC zone—Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic (CAR), and Chad—granted its first branch-opening authorizations under the framework adopted on Dec. 20, 2024. Alongside Afriland, Moroccan money-transfer firm Wafacash and Morocco’s Bank of Africa (BOA) also received approvals.
Afriland targets Congo, CAR, Chad
The authorization allows Afriland First Bank, Cameroon’s largest lender, to expand into Congo, CAR, and Chad. The approvals support the bank’s strategy to enter markets it has long targeted, including those where it already backs industrial projects. Afriland First Bank has expressed interest in Chad since 2022.
The planned branches mark a return to regional growth for Afriland First Bank after its swift exit from Equatorial Guinea several years ago. They also support a broader goal of strengthening the sub-regional banking network, which is a key part of the CEMAC single-license regime. Under this framework, branches can later be converted into full banking subsidiaries.
“The new framework allows banks already licensed in one CEMAC member state to extend activities to another member state,” said Yvon Sana Bangui, Governor of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC), in a statement on Feb. 14, 2025. “They can open a branch without completing new administrative procedures in the host country.”
Fokam strengthens Africa’s financial institutions
Fokam founded Afriland First Bank in 1987. Since then, it has become one of the leading banks in the region, with branches in nine African countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, South Sudan, and Uganda. It has 87 branches, 218 ATMs, and 386 electronic payment terminals and serves more than 705,000 customers.
Afriland has made digital banking a top priority, which has made its products easier for customers to access in all of its markets. Fokam has said many times how important it is for African-led banks to support sustainable development. In 2023, the bank invested $2.7 billion into its local economy, showing how committed it is to national development.
Bank supports agriculture, energy growth
In April Afriland First Bank partnered with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to expand lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Cameroon. The partnership with up to $60 million in financing targets businesses that have struggled to access credit, particularly those led by women.
Afriland has also been involved in major regional projects. It played a central role in facilitating a $1.2 billion partnership between the CAR and the Indian conglomerate Mahasakthi to develop 30,000 hectares for the production of sugarcane and cassava. The agreement which was signed in Bangui will enhance energy production and the CAR's agricultural sector.
