(Business in Cameroon) - In a press release published on Wednesday, regional securities market BVMAC’s regulator, COSUMAF, invited the public not to subscribe to the public offering launched by United Forest Finance, a Cameroonian microfinance institution that is being established. 

"COSUMAF reminds that the public placement of financial instruments (...) in the form of solicitations inviting people to subscribe to said instruments is a regulated investment service subject to prior approval. United Forest Finance is not on the list of organizations approved and authorized, by COSUMAF, to place securities issued via public offering,”  warns COSUMAF  president, Jacqueline Nkembe (photo). Consequently, she concludes, the public offering launched by this microfinance institution in June 2023 is illegal.  

Led by Daniel Claude Abate, executive chairman of a movement known as "patronat du Sud", the project declared illegal by COSUMAF involves several high-profile Cameroonians. These include managing directors of state-owned companies such as Mekulu Mvondo of the national social security fund, Patrice Melom of the Port Authority of Kribi, and Philémon Zo'o Zame of the telecom regulator ART. There are also senior civil servants such as Cyrille Edou Alo'o, Director General of the Budget at the Ministry of Finance, and former members of the National Assembly such as Bonaventure Mvondo Assam and Martin Bile Bidjang.

The warning issued by COSUMAF came after an ordinary meeting of the market regulator’s executives on July 20, 2023. The meeting officially resulted in the approval of new financial market intermediaries. The intermediaries approved are financial investment advisor Aries Capital SAS and the UCITS management company Stoneshed Asset Management. The applications of three other companies seeking approvals as financial market advisors were also rejected, we learn. 

BRM