Banking in Sierra Leone consists of a
central bank
A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union,
and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central b ...
, the
Bank of Sierra Leone, seven commercial banks, and six community banks.
Banking sector
The
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
destroyed many of the
branches
A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term ''twig'' usually r ...
of the country's commercial banks and as of 2005 there were 34 commercial bank branches, the majority in the major towns.
Procedures for obtaining loans have been assessed as very complicated and there is a relatively low ratio of private credit to
GDP
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...
at just over 4 percent.
[
]
Community Banks
Community banks play the role of extended
financial services to local communities which are not able to access the commercial banks. They are also designed to help development within Sierra Leone by supporting the government's
microfinancing
Microfinance is a category of financial services targeting individuals and small businesses who lack access to conventional banking and related services. Microfinance includes microcredit, the provision of small loans to poor clients; savings ...
program and by empowering local communities.
[
]
See also
*List of banks in Sierra Leone
This is a list of commercial banks in Sierra Leone
; Commercial banks
# Sierra Leone Commercial Bank
# Standard Chartered Bank (Sierra Leone)
# Rokel Commercial Bank
# Guaranty Trust Bank (Sierra Leone)
# Union Trust Bank
# First Internationa ...
References
{{Africa topic, prefix=Banking in
Economy of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...