Just 5% of SMEs in sub-Saharan Africa are adequately served by banks, new research by the International Chamber of Commerce has found. Worldwide, increasing regulatory and compliance requirements for banks is having a direct effect on SMEs’ chances of gaining access to funds – with those in developing countries bearing the brunt of it.

In fact, the rate of rejections versus proposals are the highest across these regions – with sub-Saharan Africa recording a rejection rate of 10.3% compared to a proposal rate of 6.4%.

As reported by Moneyweb, the survey also found the risk profile of trade finance activities by African banks to be more favourable than that of traditional bank lending, with the average non-performing loan (NPL) for trade finance portfolio in Africa at 4% – lower than the NPL of 9% for traditional bank assets but higher than the 1% by banks outside the continent.

18 October 2016
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