The
BICICI, a local subsidiary of France’s BNP Paribas bank, said it had
temporarily suspended all Ivory Coast operations in a statement published on
its website Monday.
“We are
no longer capable of assuring that our activities are carried out with
sufficient judicial and financial security for our clients, nor physical
security for our employees,” the statement said.
Tuesday
is a national holiday in Ivory Coast, so the number of banks that had closed
could not be determined.
But a
bank official, who asked to not be identified because he is not authorized to
speak to journalists, said more banks would close during the coming week.
Officials
condemned the measure on state television Monday evening, saying BICICI and US
bank Citibank were punishing the Ivorian people by closing.
Citibank
could not be immediately reached for comment.
West
African regional bank Ecobank has shut down its automatic banking machines, but
employees at several locations said it was because of computer problems.
Justin
Katinan Kone, the budget minister in the government of incumbent leader Laurent
Gbagbo, accused the BICICI of timing the closure to coincide with the payment
of public service salaries, but assured Ivorians that “every measure has been
taken with other banks to assure the payment of salaries and the continuity of
bank services.” The closures spread fear that cash could run out in the West
African nation that is gripped by a political standoff between Gbagbo, who
refuses to give up power after a November presidential election, and his
opponent Alassane Ouattara. International organizations say Ouattara won the November
poll, and the results were certified by the UN
The
regional central bank of West African states, known by its French acronym
BCEAO, endorsed Ouattara’s victory and replaced a key Gbagbo ally at its head
last month in a move to cut off Gbagbo’s access to state coffers. Gbagbo
retaliated by seizing the central bank’s local offices and all of the cash they
had, though the electronic system that manages international financial
transfers was shut down by the bank’s head office in Dakar, Senegal.
Banking has
continued since then, though at a slowed pace because commercial bank
transactions are no longer underwritten by the central bank and every check has
to be manually cleared before it can be cashed.
The
delays could adversely affect business in the world’s largest producer of cocoa
and send ripple effects through the region, which relies on Ivory Coast’s ports
for food and construction supplies.
Last
week, the BCEAO threatened criminal proceedings against all banks that
continued to work with local branches in Ivory Coast, now run by employees who
answer only to Gbagbo’s government.
Gbagbo
was able to pay civil servant salaries in December and January, but it’s
unclear how deep his financial reserves are or how long he will be able to keep
the country running.
In
January, Ouattara declared a one-month moratorium on cocoa exports in an effort
to sever one of Gbagbo’s last sources of revenue Most major international cocoa
exporters have complied with Ouattara’s measure, but the cocoa is stockpiled in
humid warehouses and could go bad if it is not exported soon.
