The Burkinabe financial group is now present in seven West African countries, after having launched the activities of its Nigerien subsidiary on Monday, December 2. In the line of sight, the financing of SMEs and actors in the informal sector, which represents nearly 40% of the country’s GDP.

For Idrissa Nassa, the arrival of Coris Bank International (CBI) in Niger is a continuation of its strategy based on financing small businesses. “The Nigerien subsidiary will evolve in line with what the group is doing in West African countries. Our limit will be risk control in Niger”, assures the Burkinabe businessman.

At the head of a handful of Burkinabè entrepreneurs and CBI executives, he made the trip to Niamey on Monday, December 2, appearing alongside the Nigerien Minister of Economy, Mamoudou Diop, a former executive of the Bank central West African states.

For this expansion into its seventh market in West Africa, the group founded in 2008 on the ashes of Financière du Burkina, a credit institution in the midst of a crisis at the time, is betting on financing SMEs and Nigerian economy. “Niger’s economy is one of the most informal in the sub-region, and companies are not always well structured compared to the country’s potential. This means for us that they have room to develop,” says Idrissa Nassa.