Assessment of the Place de l'Indépendance Branch

Fourth step of our site visits to the Interbank Burundi distribution network: Place de l'Indépendance Branch.

1. Background

In July 1999, the Central Bank deeply changed its Exchange Rules , by instituting a second Exchange Window where certain categories of hard currency resources will be sold or purchased in a more or less decontrolled way . It also encouraged the local commercial banks to adopt and to promote this new Exchange Policy by opening quickly those Exchange Windows.

It is in this framework that the idea of establishing the Place de l'Indépendance Branch came up, with the second exchange Bureau operating since January 2000, after the one at the Bank Head Office, in a very convivial setting: a big parking for our Clients, local and had currencies cash desks personalized,…

This"corner" establishment meets indeed the objectives of our new option for a corner bank set up since 1998.

2. Output

The Place de l'Indépendance Branch is operating since three years ago and its output is rather satisfactory in spite of restrictions to the liberalization of the exchange policy adopted in 2001.

As a proof:

• 466 accounts have been opened in local currency;
• 155 accounts have been opened in hard currency ;
• the average daily deposit is currently of BIF 80, 000,000;
• the average daily deposits of BIF 100, 000, 000;
• and the average daily withdrawls of BIF 70, 000, 000
  

In this last capacity, he got the opportunity to welcome high ranking visitors among them senior officers of La Belgolaise on their journeys in Bujumbura.

Married and father of two children, Mr Seff GAHWA is aged 34.

IBB-News / 19 August 2002
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