ACEP Group
BIO has granted a EUR 1.5 M loan to AACE (ACEP Group), a pan-African microfinance group operating in Burkina Faso, Niger, Madagascar and Cameroon.
Amount
€ 1,500,000.00
Type of investment
Debt
Development impacts
- Local economic growth
- Financial inclusion
- Financial additionality
Beneficiary locations
Investment field
Financial Institutions
Activity
ACEP Holding is a pan-African microfinance institution operating in Burkina Faso, Niger, Madagascar and Cameroon, focused on support small businesses and fostering responsible entrepreneurship with a commitment to gender equality and environmental sustainability.
ACEP Niger was established in 2012 and contributes to financial inclusion.
The funds will be exclusively targeted to support the equity of its Nigerien entity and continue serving its clients amidst the challenging macro economic context.
Development impacts
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Local economic growth
The BIO loan is expected to expand the provision of credits to microentrepreneurs - that account for 91% of clients and 51% of outstanding loan portfolio - and small-size enterprises mostly active in small-scale retail shops and services, as well as short financial literacy training provided to new clients. As a deposit-taking institution, ACEP Niger also mobilizes local savings by offering current, savings and term accounts to its customers.
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Financial inclusion
Enhancing access to basic financial and non-financial services to an increasing number of urban and peri-urban microentrepreneurs and very small enterprises that are typically unserved by the traditional banking system with small productive loans of average loan size of EUR 1750, thereby improving financial inclusion in a country with amongst the lowest levels of financial inclusion in Africa.
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Financial additionality
BIO is offering a longer tenor loan than what is available on the local market (max 3 years) or with international lenders, in the form of a subordinated debt that is not easily available on local market and provides a risk buffer to ACEP Niger by strengthening the entity’s capital base.
E&S Impact
ACEP Niger and BIO agreed on an action plan to strengthen the E&S practices of the institution, mainly regarding environmental risks (incl. the review of the exclusion list), training of Board members and enhancement of internal data management
Situation at the time of investment
ACEP Niger is committed to the Universal Standards of E&S performance management and has a good understanding of how to implement the Client Protection Principles. It underwent two internal audits on its E&S performance and worked on an action plan to tackle the gaps. The HR Manager acts as CSR Champion and attended a BIO workshop on Client Protection Principles in 2024 in Côte d’Ivoire.
Risk Category: C
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