Ecobank Transnational

In the early 1980s, the West African banking sector was dominated by foreign and state-owned entities. The founders of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) saw a gap; there were very few private-sector banks owned and managed by Africans to serve African entrepreneurs. This observation, born out of a private sector initiative spearheaded by the Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce and Industry, laid the groundwork for a new financial institution. Key figures Gervais Koffi Djondo and Adeyemi Lawson were instrumental in bringing this vision to life. ETI was incorporated in 1985 in Lomé, Togo, with an initial authorized capital of $100 million. Its founding shareholders successfully raised an initial paid-up capital of $32 million from over 1,500 individuals and institutions across West Africa. A significant early supporter was the ECOWAS Fund for Cooperation, Compensation and Development, which became the largest shareholder and underscored the bank's regional mission. The first subsidiary opened in Togo in March 1988, marking the beginning of its operational journey. A major event in the bank's journey was its ambitious multi-billion dollar public offering in August 2008. Ecobank launched a combined rights issue and public offer simultaneously across three stock exchanges in Nigeria, Ghana, and the Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières in Abidjan, a first for the continent. This move was designed to fund the expansion of its branch network and solidify its position as a leading pan-African banking group.