(Business in Cameroon) - Cameroon raised the interest rates on its short-term borrowing on the Beac public securities market in January 2023. From 3%, the average interest rate on fungible Treasury bills (BTAs) first reached 4.1% in December 2022, before being further increased to 4.3% in January 2023.

The move was motivated by the high demand for financing on the market and the search for profitability by banks, operating as primary dealers (SVTs). The latter, we learned, prefer to invest in government securities with credit risk, but with more competitive interest rates.

Despite this increase in interest rates on its BTAs, Cameroon remains the country with the lowest debt on the BEAC public securities market. According to official data, over the same period, the average interest rates on this category of public securities were 5.6% for Gabon, 6.6% for Congo, 6.9% for Chad, and 7.1% for Equatorial Guinea.

BRM