NSIA Banque secures €25M to boost Ivorian SME lending
NSIA Banque Côte d’Ivoire has obtained €25 million in financing from Impact Fund Denmark, the Danish development finance institution. The bank announced the operation on Thursday, July 9. The funding aims to strengthen lending capacity for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and green transition businesses.
The agreement allocates 80 percent of resources to MSMEs. The remaining 20 percent will finance renewable energy and electric mobility projects.
Access to credit remains a major barrier for Ivorian small businesses. The International Finance Corporation estimated the MSME financing gap at 1,368.2 billion CFA francs ($2.4 billion) in a 2022 study.
Furthermore, 55 percent of Ivorian MSMEs lack access to formal credit, according to a report on women-led enterprises.
That proportion reaches 78 percent for women-led businesses. Banks often consider financial structuring insufficient for these companies.
MSMEs nevertheless constitute the backbone of Côte d’Ivoire’s entrepreneurial fabric. They also represent a major source of job creation.
NSIA Banque reported net customer loans of 1,744 billion CFA francs in the first quarter of 2026.
That figure declined 4 percent from the end of 2025. However, net profit rose 53 percent year-on-year to 10.9 billion CFA francs.
The bank attributed the performance to increased securities revenues, higher commissions, and rigorous cost management. NSIA Banque continues to pursue digitalization and financial inclusion efforts.
The new financing line will enable the bank to support local enterprises struggling to access traditional banking services. It will also back projects contributing to ecological transition.