Exclusive interview with Alassane Sorgo, Directeur General of Ecobank Congo DRC, a diamond plus and event sponsor of the upcoming DRC Mining Week in Lubumbashi

Exclusive interview with Alassane Sorgo, Directeur General of Ecobank Congo DRC, a diamond plus and event sponsor of the upcoming DRC Mining Week in Lubumbashi.

Let’s start with some background on Ecobank, what your services entail and where in the world you are active?

The Ecobank Group is a pan-African banking institution that was founded by Africans in 1985 in Togo, West Africa. The bank has since grown to become one of the largest and most important financial institutions on the continent, with an unrivalled presence in 35 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

We also have a presence in Paris and representative offices in Johannesburg (South Africa), London (England), Dubai (United Arab Emirates), Beijing (China) and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

The group employs more than 13,000 people and offers a full range of retail banking, commercial banking and corporate and investment banking products, services and solutions across multiple channels, including digital, to more than 32 million customers.

At Ecobank, we are committed to fulfilling our mission to contribute to the economic development and financial integration of Africa. We use our very good knowledge of Africa and our financial expertise to serve our clients. Our pan-African network provides a unique platform for payments, trade and investment in Africa and beyond.

Since 2008, when the Ecobank RDC subsidiary was created, we have been leveraging the strength of our pan-African group to implement our local expertise and market knowledge to provide tailor-made banking solutions to our customers and provide the necessary support. which will allow us to support our customers on a daily basis to together create value, wealth and jobs and thus contribute to the socio-economic development of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Any specific projects or success stories that you are particularly proud of and want to share?

Through our activities, we wish to demonstrate a constant commitment to exceeding expectations, anticipating difficulties and constantly innovating to be of service to all those who contribute to the modernisation of the Congolese economy and the development of the country.

Thus, we make every effort to encourage our employees to be closer to market trends, which allows us to adjust our strategy and bring added value to customers and stakeholders. In addition, our investments in technology and digitalisation allow our customers to be autonomous and to take advantage of our banking services when they need them, from their office, home or elsewhere.

As a pioneer in the digitalisation of banking services, our strategy allows us to be flexible enough to react to changing circumstances. Our ability to adapt to unpredictable events is one of the keys to our success.
This makes Ecobank RDC a dynamic bank whose strengths are based on:- Our ability to anticipate our customers’ expectations by offering an innovative and differentiating offer; – Our ability to develop secure digital platforms for our customers, which give them continuous access to our services. Without forgetting the financial solutions that we offer to fintech companies via our Sandbox, which is unique in the Congolese market. – Our governance, which is both demanding and rigorous, which enables us to control risks in accordance with international standards and to meet the expectations of our stakeholders; – Our role as a systemically important bank that strengthens local skills and promotes the country’s economic development. – The support we offer to entrepreneurs, in particular women entrepreneurs and women-focused businesses through the “Ellever by Ecobank” programme, with the aim of equipping them with the tools and skills that will enable them to lead their businesses and empower their community effectively.

This pan-African initiative aims, in addition to strengthening funding for women, to support them in non-financial components focused on training, coaching, standardisation, formalisation, and market access, through tools digital.

Where in Africa are you focusing for future growth?

With a presence in 35 countries in Africa, Ecobank is the leading pan-African private sector banking group with unparalleled African expertise. In terms of growth, our vision therefore remains pan-African with the mission of stimulating financial integration on the continent.

As a group and depending on the region, the growth dynamics are different, but for us in the DRC, the mining sector and its related activities remain growth drivers for the country, as do the energy, telecoms and also agro-industry. Our efforts to support these priority sectors will therefore increase.

What is your vision for your operations in the DRC and the region? Are there particular challenges?

Within Ecobank DRC, we position ourselves as an innovative bank that offers products and services that are tailored to the main economic players in the country. We operate in a country which, through its mineral resources, is strategic in the growth of many areas.We therefore want to be the essential bank supporting players in the sector who identify our expertise as being an added value in their development strategies. Our knowledge of the mining industry allows us to respond to the challenges and opportunities faced by mining companies.
To meet the energy (electricity supply) and communication (internet supply) challenge faced by the supply of digital services in rural and semi-urban areas, we, through our specific loan offers for the purchase of equipment, working capital financing, project expansion phase financing, foreign exchange transactions, the analyses we provide on mining market trends or even our cash management services, we are truly committed in the success of the mining sector and its value chain in the DRC.