American Citibank is in talks to enter the banking sector in Ethiopia. Citibank was founded in 1812 as City Bank of New York. Now it has branches in 19 countries.
Citibank has no physical presence in Ethiopia until now. However it has been financing deals with Ethiopian Airlines. It has been a major player in financing the airline’s aircraft purchases. Its talks with the Ethiopian authorities to enter Ethiopia physically are in final phase.
At the end of last year, Ethiopian House of People’s Representatives (HoPR) passed new Banking Business Law allowing foreign banks and foreigners to enter the Ethiopian banking sector.
Liberalization of Ethiopian banking sector is part of macro economic reforms introduced by the Ethiopian government in July last year. International Financing Institutions, including the IMF & World Bank, have been urging the Ethiopian government to open its economy to foreign investors. Ethiopia had to get a bailout package from IMF and World Bank last year. It agreed to liberalize various sectors of its economy before getting the bailout package.
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