Introduced last year, the Best Local Bank Award recognises banks that primarily provide only country-wide operations that nevertheless provide access to crucial financial services while contributing to the development of their operating country’s banking and finance system by having instituted global best practices.
Other nominees for this years award are Banco Internacional de Moambique, First Bank of Nigeria, Tanzania’s National Bank of Commerce and Banque Internationale Arabe de Tunisie.
The Best Local Bank Award is one of prizes to be presented during the annual African Banker Awards ceremony to be held on October 8 in Washington DC.
Now in its fourth run, the African Banker Awards is organised by African Banker magazine and IC Events.
It takes place every year during the International Monetary Fund/World Bank annual meetings and brings together over 300 key banking industry players and top government officials from Africa and the rest of the world.
The African Banker Awards honour the achievements of companies and individuals who have contributed significantly to the reform, modernisation and expansion of the continent’s banking and financial system.
Moroccos Attijariwafa Bank, Mali’s Bank of Africa, multinational Barclays Africa, Kenya’s Equity Bank and South Africa’s Standard Bank Group all with a strong African footprint will be vying for the overall African Bank of the Year Award.
One of the judges is respected Zimbabwean banker and former cabinet minister Nkosana Moyo who is now vice president and chief operating officer at the African Development Bank.
According to organisers, this years competition is characterised by a wider geographical spread of financial institutions making the selection cut.
The most notable absentees this year are the Nigerian institutions who have undergone a tough year of restructuring and difficult trading conditions.
Nominations for the award for Africas best banking guru were dominated by Kenyan bankers.
Adan Mohamed, managing director of Barclays Bank Kenya is vying for the individual prize of African Banker of the Year against his compatriots James Mwangi, chief executive of Kenyas Equity Bank and Martin Oduor-Otieno who heads Kenya Commercial Bank.
Post published in: Economy