Banks in Guinea-Bissau held 39.4bn FCFA (€60mn) in reserves at the regional central bank BCEAO in the month to September 15, 4.1 times the 9.6bn FCFA (€15mn) required, according to BCEAO data published on November 6. Their excess reserves were 29.8bn FCFA (€45mn). In the month to August 15, the excess reached 31.8bn FCFA (€48mn), double the 15.8bn FCFA (€24mn) of a year earlier. Gross loans fell 1.3% in September to 240.9bn FCFA (€367mn).
Analysis: Some of the increase appears seasonal. Excess reserves also rose in mid-2025, during the cashew export season, but to half this year's level. Guinea-Bissau's banks are also more liquid than the regional norm: across the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), reserves held were 3.5 times the requirement, by our calculation. The surplus equals about 12% of banks' loan book. Meanwhile, loans have fallen 4.9% since July and one loan in five is non-performing. That pattern is consistent with banks keeping cash rather than lending, though the BCEAO gives no reason. Its October bulletin is expected in early December. No date has been published.
Source: BCEAO, BCEAO, Bulletin mensuel des statistiques, septembre 2026 (posted November 6, 2026), August 16 - September 15, 2026 and July 16 - August 15, 2025 and May 16 - June 15, 2026 and September 2026; BCEAO, BCEAO, Bulletin mensuel des statistiques, août 2026 (posted October 7, 2026), August 2026