The 2020 financial year was very difficult for the decentralized financial systems (DFS) of the West African Monetary Union (WAMU) falling under article 44 of the law regulating DFS (level of activity reaching a threshold of 2 billion of FCFA in outstanding deposits and loans) with profits down 38% compared to 2019.
According to data from the General Secretariat of the Banking Commission, the community banking supervisory body based in Abidjan, these profits amounted to FCFA 18.8 billion against FCFA 30.3 billion at the end of the 2019 financial year. << The benefits are distributed, in order of importance, between Senegal (8.5 billion), Burkina (5.4 billion), Côte d’Ivoire (4.2 billion), Benin (3.2 billion) billion) and Togo (1.8 billion) >>, reports the Banking Commission. As for the MFIs of Mali and Niger, they recorded respective losses of 2.9 billion FCFA and 1.4 billion FCFA.
As of December 31, 2020, the net financial income (NFC) of these MFIs stood at CFAF 257.4 billion, up slightly by 0.6%, on an annual basis. According to the Banking Commission, this weak growth in the PNF led to an overall operating income of CFAF 273.3 billion in 2020 against CFAF 273.9 billion a year earlier, or an annual decrease of 0.2%.
The gross operating income, coming out at 62.1 billion FCFA, also decreased by 2.8%, in connection with the weak progression of the PNF and the increase of 0.6% of the general expenses, coming out at 197, 0 billion FCFA.
Taking into account the net risk provisions amounting to CFAF 49.3 billion, the operating result stood at CFAF 12.8 billion at the end of the year under review against CFAF 26.1 billion. in 2019, a decrease of 50.8%.
Regarding the main financial ratios, Commission data indicates a decrease of 0.8 percentage point, year-on-year, in operating expenses related to the loan portfolio, standing at 27.7% in 2020 against 28.5%. % in 2019, for a maximum standard of 35%. The ratio of overheads to the loan portfolio also fell by 0.8 percentage point, year-on-year, to stand at 13.6% in 2020, to a ceiling of 15% for direct credit structures and 20%. % for savings and loan structures.
As for the staff expense ratio, it fell by 0.2 percentage point, year-on-year, to stand at 6.9% in 2020 against 7.1%, for a ceiling of 5% for credit structures. direct and 10% for savings and loan structures.
Return on equity (ratio of operating income excluding subsidies to average equity) stood at 2.2% in 2020 against 4.8% at the end of 2019, for a minimum standard of 15%.
The return on assets for its part stood at 0.5% in 2020 against 1.1% at the end of 2019, for a minimum standard of 3%.
According to the Commission, the operational self-sufficiency of MFIs fell by 3.5 percentage points, year-on-year, to stand at 83.3% in 2020 against 86.8% a year earlier, for a minimum standard of 130 %.
For its part, the profit margin (which measures the share of operating income generated over the total amount of operating income) showed a decrease of 3.9 percentage points between 2019 and 2020, from 7.7 % to 3.8%, for a minimum standard of 20%.
The cost / income ratio (which provides information on the level of absorption of the PNF by overheads), also recorded a decline of 0.1 percentage point, year-on-year, to stand at 76.6% in 2020 against 76.5%, for a ceiling of 40% for direct credit structures and 60% for savings and credit structures.
The rate of return on assets (which relates the amount of interest as well as commissions received on productive assets for the period) stood at 14.7% in 2020 against 15.5% a year earlier, i.e. a decrease of 0.8 percentage point, for a minimum standard of 15%.
As far as it is concerned, the liquidity ratio of assets increased by 1.6 percentage points, year on year, to stand at 29.6% in 2020 against 28.0% in 2019, for a minimum standard 2% for direct credit structures and 5% for savings and credit structures.
Likewise, the capitalization ratio (representing the proportion of equity in total assets) increased by 0.3 percentage point, year on year, to stand at 22.9% in 2020 against 22.6% in 2019, for a minimum standard of 15%.
Based on the accounting data received by the Commission Bancaire for the 2018 and 2019 financial years, the number of MFIs falling under Article 44 increased by 14 units to reach 188 institutions. The SFDs in this category are thus made up of 84 networks and unitary institutions and 104 basic funds affiliated to a network. The networks and unitary institutions encompass unaffiliated companies, associations, networks and Mutualist Institutions or Cooperatives of Savings and Credit (IMCEC).
