Morocco ranks three of its banks among Africa's top ten in 2023
Three Moroccan banks, Attijariwafa Bank, Groupe Banques Populaire and Bank of Africa, are among the ten best African banks in 2023, according to the list drawn up by the prestigious international financial publication The Banker.
In the report accompanying the list, the publication highlights the stability demonstrated by the Moroccan banking sector, in a very difficult economic environment on the African continent, characterised by rising interest rates; the strength of the US dollar, which has affected local currencies; and the global economic challenges arising from the war in Ukraine.
Attijariwafa Bank was the highest ranked, rising from seventh on the 2022 list to sixth in 2023. Despite a 5.8% decline in Tier 1 capital and assets due to the 12% devaluation of the Moroccan dirham, the bank maintained a solid financial base that has allowed it to rank among the continent's best banks.
The bank ranks third in the North African region, behind only Egypt's National Bank and Banque Misr.
Groupe Banques Populaire and Bank of Africa, also Moroccan, were able to weather the devaluation of the local currency, ranking seventh and eighth respectively (fourth and seventh in the region).
Five other Moroccan banks have also made it onto The Banker's list of the top 100 African banks of 2023. They are Société Générale Maroc (22nd); Credit Agricole du Maroc (25th); CIH Bank (33rd); BMCI Bank (36th) and Credit du Maroc (43rd).
South Africa in the lead
The Banker's overall ranking is led by South Africa's Standard Bank Group, FirstRand, ABSA Group and Nedbank Group, which occupy the top four positions, followed by Egypt's Afreximbank.
Despite the slowing economic growth environment, most of the 100 banks on the list demonstrated significant resilience, with 70 of them reporting an increase in pre-tax profits in FY2022.
In contrast, the devaluation of major African currencies due to the strong dollar impacted the asset and capital bases of almost half of the banks.
