Burkinabe tycoon Idrissa Nassa’s Coris Bank gets $34 million to expand SME lending in Côte d’Ivoire

Key Points

• Coris Bank secured a €30 million ($34.3 million) senior loan from Proparco to boost SME credit in Côte d’Ivoire, addressing critical financing gaps.
• Since 2021, Coris and Proparco expanded their partnership across West Africa, supporting trade finance and local industry growth.
• Coris Bank now manages $9 billion in assets across seven countries, pursuing further expansion into Central Africa, including Gabon.

Coris Bank International, the Burkina Faso-based lender founded by Idrissa Nassa, has secured a €30 million ($34.3 million) senior loan from Proparco, the private sector arm of the French Development Agency (AFD). The funding is aimed at expanding the bank’s ability to provide credit to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Côte d’Ivoire.

Announced earlier this month, the loan follows a trade finance guarantee renewed in April 2025 between the two partners. Both initiatives are designed to ease the persistent financing hurdles faced by Ivorian SMEs. “We look forward to deepening our collaboration with Proparco, especially around international trade, as we stay committed to supporting African entrepreneurs and building stronger, more sustainable value chains,” said Nassa, President of Coris Group.

Coris Bank, Proparco extend finance pact

Coris and Proparco began working together in 2021 when Proparco issued its first trade finance guarantee to Coris Bank Burkina Faso. Since then, the partnership has grown to include subsidiaries in Senegal, Togo, Benin, and more recently, Chad. Côte d’Ivoire’s Coris Bank subsidiary is now the second largest in the group, after Burkina Faso.

The need for SME financing in Côte d’Ivoire is significant. A 2016 survey found that one in four SMEs cited limited access to finance as their biggest challenge. The International Finance Corporation estimates that the funding gap for these businesses stands at CFA1.368 trillion ($2.4 billion).

The new facility builds on an earlier agreement signed in April this year, when Coris Bank Chad secured €7 million ($7.6 million) in trade finance from Proparco. That financing was used to help import essential raw materials for local industries in Chad, part of a broader effort to ease supply shortages and support sectors key to the country’s growth.

Coris expands with $9 billion assets

Coris Bank’s regional growth has been remarkable. Since it was established in 2008 with just $3 million in capital, the bank has grown into a financial group managing more than $9 billion in assets. It now operates in seven West African countries, including Mali, Togo, Senegal, Benin, Niger, and Guinea-Bissau.

Under Nassa’s leadership, Coris has taken bold steps to grow its footprint. In 2021, it launched Coris Bank Guinea. Two years later, it acquired Standard Chartered’s retail banking business in Côte d’Ivoire, and in 2024, it took over Société Générale’s unit in Chad. The bank is also reportedly exploring a potential acquisition of Société Générale Mauritanie.

Coris Bank Togo assets reach $845 million

Coris Bank Togo, one of its more established subsidiaries, has seen its assets grow from $685 million in 2021 to $845 million as of September 2024. The branch serves more than 79,000 customers and has onboarded nearly 200,000 users on its digital wallet platform, Coris Money, which launched in July 2022 as part of a broader financial inclusion push. Customer deposits in Togo have reached $496 million, while the loan book stands at $331 million.

In March, Coris signaled its intent to enter the Central African market. During a meeting in Libreville with Gabonese President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, Nassa discussed plans to either establish a subsidiary or acquire an existing bank in Gabon. The move is part of the group’s wider ambition to rank among Africa’s top banking institutions.