Banque du Congo Belge

The Banque du Congo Belge (BCB, ; lit. 'Bank of the Belgian Congo') was a Belgian colonial bank that mainly operated in the Belgian Congo from 1909 to 1960. Following Congolese independence, it kept operating as the Banque du Congo from 1960 to 1971, the Banque Commerciale Zaïroise from 1971 to 1997, and the Banque Commerciale Du Congo (BCDC) from 1997 to 2020, when it was acquired by Kenya-based Equity Group Holdings and became part of Equity Banque Commerciale du Congo.

The BCB was the bank of issue in the Belgian Congo from 1911 to 1952 and in Ruanda-Urundi from 1916 to 1952. It was succeeded in that role in 1952 by the newly established Banque Centrale du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi. Its operations in Belgium were spun off in 1960 as Banque Belgolaise. Its commercial operations in Burundi were also spun off in 1964 and became the Banque de Crédit de Bujumbura.

Background

From 1886 to 1908, King Leopold II of the Belgians ruled the Congo Free State as his private domain. On July 27, 1887, he issued a Royal decree that established the Belgian franc as the money of account for the Congo Free State and for Ruanda-Urundi. In 1890, the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty put Ruanda-Urundi within the German Empire's sphere of influence in Africa. Consequently, the German East African rupie became the official currency in Ruanda-Urundi though the franc continued to circulate there. The Free State's decision not to create a dedicated currency has been explained by the concern to preserve barter arrangements which were beneficial to Belgian merchants, as well as the fear that a more monetized economy would create pressures to end the regime of forced labour on which the colony relied heavily.[1]

In 1908, Belgium assumed direct responsibility for the Congo, taking it from Leopold and thus creating the conditions for the introduction of a colonial monetary system.

Colonial bank

The Banque du Congo Belge was founded on 1909/01/11 at the initiative of Albert Thys and the Banque d'Outremer he led, by a number of institutions, including the Compagnie du Congo pour le Commerce et l'Industrie (CCCI), the Banque de Bruxelles, the Bunge trading house, and several private banking firms including the Banque Lambert. After a few weeks and at the request of the Belgian authorities, the capital of the new bank was further opened to established Belgian financial institutions that included the Société Générale de Belgique (SGB), Crédit Général Liégeois, Crédit Général de Belgique, Banque Internationale de Bruxelles, the Balser banking house, and the Société Commerciale et Financière Africaine (Comfina).[2] As a result, the main shareholders of the BCB in 1909 were the CCCI, the Banque d'Outremer, the SGB, the Comfina, Édouard Empain, the Banque de Bruxelles, De Nederlandsche Bank, and banker Franz Philippson.[3]

Post-colonial era

With Congolese independence impending in 1960, the BCB adapted its corporate structure. On 1960/04/14 it formed a new Belgian bank, the Banque Belgo-Congolaise (abbreviated in 1965 as Banque Belgolaise), which took over the BCB's existing operations in Brussels, Antwerp, and London. In June 1960, it transferred most central administrative functions from Brussels to Léopoldville. On 1960/08/24, the BCB renamed itself the Banque du Congo. Simultaneously, the bank accelerated the elevation of native Africans within its staff, raising their share in management from 10 percent in early 1960 to 30 percent in early 1961 and over 40 percent by the end of 1963. This helped it to re-open by early 1964 all branches that had to be closed in the previous few years during the Congo Crisis.

On 1964/08/08, the bank's operations in what had become Burundi and Rwanda were reorganized as the Banque de Crédit de Bujumbura, which was subsequently acquired in 1965 by Banque Belgolaise.

In late 1963, Morgan Guaranty International Banking Corporation, an affiliate of Morgan Guaranty created in 1960, took a minority stake in the Banque du Congo. In 1965, it allowed the Congolese state to also become a minority shareholder through a capital increase. In early 1970, the Banque du Congo became a founding shareholder of the newly established Société Congolaise de Financement et de Dévéloppement, known as Socofide.

The bank was renamed Banque Commerciale Zaïroise when the country's name was changed to Zaire in 1971. By 1987 it was still by far the largest bank in the country, ahead of the Société Congolaise de Banque

Leadership

Chairs of the Board:

• Omer Lepreux, 1909-1927
• Louis Franck, 1927-1937
• Paul Charles (Belgium), 1938-1951
• Pierre de Bonvoisin, 1951-1960?

See also

• Banque Belge d'Afrique
• Société Congolaise de Banque
• Banque de l'Afrique Occidentale
• Banco Nacional Ultramarino
• List of banks in Belgium