The 2025 edition of the Awards will recognise and celebrate the strides being made by banks across the continent with a focus on innovation, transformation and also the promotion of inclusivity and gender equality. 58 nominees have made the shortlist for the 2025 awards, which has become a fixture on the African banking calendar.
LONDON, England 2 May, 2025 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- African Banker magazine has announced the shortlist of nominees for this year’s edition of its annual African Banker Awards.
The winners will be made known during the official gala ceremony scheduled for May 28th in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, as part of the official programme of the Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank.
The 2025 edition of the African Banker Awards is organised by African Banker magazine and IC Events under the patronage of the African Development Bank. The ceremony’s platinum sponsor remains the African Guarantee Fund, a fund created to share risks with commercial banks to encourage them to lend to the SME sector while ATIDI, which provides facilities to ensure against country risks and other associated insurance services, comes in as exclusive cocktail sponsor.
The African Banker Awards has, since its inception in 2007, sought to recognise and celebrate the exceptional individuals and organisations driving Africa’s rapidly transforming financial services sector.
The shortlist of nominees for the African Banker Awards 2025 was selected from over 200 entries submitted in nine categories by banks spread across the African continent. This year, two female bank executives have emerged as nominees for the prestigious “Banker of the Year” award, underlining the leading role women continue to play in shaping Africa’s banking and finance landscape.
Speaking on the awards, Omar Ben Yedder, Chair of the Awards committee commented on the increasing focus on SME, sustainable banking practices and the role of fintechs in the ecosystem. “Banks have performed strongly last year despite headwinds and currency devaluations in major countries. We also received entries in the deals category that shows that there are numerous transformative transactions taking place. And yet, the message remains. Interestingly, SMEs proved to be a profitable asset class and one that banks are paying greater attention to. The advent of AI and other technological advancements are at the centre of bank strategies too. The continent needs even bigger banks to support our growth agenda.”
The nominees for the African Banker Awards 2025 are as follows:
Bank of the Year
- Commercial International Bank Egypt (CIB)
- Ecobank
- First Bank of Nigeria Limited
- Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB Group Plc.)
- Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB Ltd.)
- Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group)
- Coris Bank International
Banker of the Year
- Abdulmajid Mussa Nsekela – CRDB Bank Plc.
- Jeremy Awori – Ecobank
- Karim Awad – EFG Holding
- Léon Konan Koffi – AFG Holding
- Mukwandi Chibesakunda – Zanaco Inc.
- Patricia Ojangole – Uganda Development Bank
- Sidi Ould Tah – The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA)
Sustainable Bank of the Year
- Commercial International Bank Egypt (CIB)
- CRDB Bank Plc.
- Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB Group Plc.)
- Nedbank
- Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group)
Fintech of the Year
- 4G Capital
- Inclusivity Solutions
- Network International
- Oze
- ProfitShare Partners
- Valu
DFI of the year
- African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank)
- African Trade Insurance Agency
- Bank of Industry
- Banque Ouest Africaine de Développement (BOAD)
- ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID)
- Shelter Afrique Development Bank (ShafDB)
- Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group)
SME Bank of the Year
- Co-operative Bank of Kenya Ltd.
- CRDB Bank Plc.
- Ecobank
- Standard Bank
- Uganda Development Bank
Deal of the Year – Infrastructure
- US$83.35 MM Al Zahy Group For General Contracting (Ahmed El Zzahy & Co.) – National Bank of Egypt
- US$646.64 MM (ZAR 12 Billion) Envusa Energy – Absa Bank Ltd. / Rand Merchant Bank
- US$1.9 Billion Kano Maradi Railway Project – African Finance Corporation / African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank)
- Project Platinum – US$200 MM Dividends Backed Capital Raise by BUA Industries Limited – Africa Finance Corporation
- US$188.62 MM (ZAR 3.5 Billion) Scatec Mogobe Battery Energy Storage System – Standard Bank
- US$1.04 Billion Suez 1.1 GW Wind Power Project in Egypt: Powering Africa’s Renewable Future – African Development Bank
- US$1.20 Billion (ZAR 22.25 Billion) Mokolo Crocodile River Water Augmentation – Standard Bank
Deal of the Year – Debt
- US$119 MM Green, Social and Sustainable Development Bond – ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID)
- US$2.05 Billion Bank of Industry – 2024 Facility – Afreximbank/Africa Finance Corporation/ Bank of Industry
- US$394 MM ETC Group (Mauritius), Inaugural Sustainability Linked Loan (SLL) – Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group)
- US$13 Billion Ghana’s Eurobond Debt Restructuring – Hogan Lovells
- US$18 MM Letshego Holdings Namibia Limited Social Bond – Rand Merchant Bank (RMB)
- Republic of Benin €507.5 facility – African Trade Insurance Agency
- Sahara Group’s US$500 MM Debt Sub-Participation Financing – Africa Finance Corporation
- US$ 590 MM – The Egyptian Chemical Industries Company (KIMA) – National Bank of Egypt
Deal of the Year – Equity
- Aradel Holdings’ US$2 Billion Listing by Introduction on Nigerian Exchange Limited – Standard Bank
- Boxer’s US$470 MM Initial Public Offering (IPO) – Standard Bank
- FQM’s US$1.15 Billion Bought Deal on the Toronto Stock Exchange- Absa Bank Ltd.
- Nigerian Breweries’ US$352 MM Rights Issue – Standard Bank
- Renaissance Acquisition of Shell- US$2.4 Billion – PwC Nigeria
- Boxer’s US$470 MM Initial Public Offering (IPO) – Absa Bank / Standard Bank
Distributed by African Media Agency. on behalf of IC Publications
About the African Banker Awards
The African Banker Awards are prestigious awards that celebrate excellence and best practices in banking and finance in Africa. These annual awards honour outstanding individuals and remarkable financial institutions that are transforming the continent’s financial sector and contributing to economic development and financial inclusion in Africa.
Organised by African Banker magazine in partnership with IC Events, the Awards bring together industry leaders from across the continent to honour innovation, resilience and competitiveness in the African banking sector.
For more information about the African Banker Awards, please visit our website at www.AfricanBankerAwards.com.
About African Banker
African Banker is a pan-African publication dedicated to the banking industry across the continent. African Banker provides in-depth analysis and commentary on the trends shaping Africa’s financial landscape.
As a trusted source of information, African Banker offers a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing the African banking sector.
For any further information, please contact Constance Haasz at the following address: c.haasz@icpublications.com
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