Banking Sector
A banking sector that goes back to the XIXth century
The track of the first bank branches in Morocco goes back to the second half of the nineteenth century.
However, it was only in 1907 that the State Bank of Morocco was formally established with a capital divided between the signatories of the 1906 Treaty of Algeciras.
The French protectorate will spur the banking sector with the opening of branches of many French and European banks. In 1943, the profession was legally organized , with the enactment of a specific dahir.
Following the independence of the Kingdom in 1956, the Central Bank- which will be renamed “Bank Al Maghrib” – replaces the State Bank of Morocco. Many banking institutions will be set up later on. These include La Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion (CDG,) Le Fonds d’Equipement Communal (FEC,) La Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur (BMCE) and La Banque Nationale pour le Développement Economique (BNDE) .
In 1993, a major reform of the banking sector allows the introduction and spread of universal banking model. Following the trends in the global banking sector, the Moroccan banking industry will be marked by a wave of mergers, acquisitions and restructuring operations.
Banking Sector: key players
The regulatory authority : Bank Al Maghrib (the central bank)
Public & private stakeholders : Attijariwafa Bank, Groupe Banques Populaires, BMCE Bank, BMCI ( BNP PARIBAS group), Citibank, Crédit immobilier et hôtelier (CIH), Crédit Agricole, Crédit du Maroc, Société générale, CFG Group.
Professional associations & federations : Groupement Professionnel des Banques du Maroc, Union marocaine des banques, Fédération des Secteurs Bancaire et Financier, Fédération nationale des associations de microcrédit
Standing of Moroccan banks in the 2013 African ranking (Jeune Afrique):
- Attijariwafa Bank (7th)
- Banque Centrale Populaire (8th)
- Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur (11th)
- Société Générale Maroc (28th)
- Banque Marocaine pour le Commerce et l’Industrie (33rd)
- Crédit du Maroc (50th)
- Crédit Immobilier et Hôtelier (61th)
At the national level, banks operating in Morocco achieved an overall GDP of MAD 36 billion in 2011, recording an increase of 9 % compared to 2010.
In terms of performance, the total net profit of the sector is growing rapidly since 2005.
The process of banking intermediation was marked by the improvement of the growth rate of customers’ deposits in 2011.
Banking: Main legal texts governing the sector
Legal Texts: :
- Dahir No. 1-95-3 dated January 26, 1995 promulgating Law No. 35-94 relating to certain negotiable debt securities
- Dahir No. 1-99-16 dated February 5, 1999 promulgating Law No. 18-97 relating to micro- credit
- Dahir No. 1-04-04 dated April 21, 2004 promulgating Law No. 24-01 relating to repurchase transactions
- Dahir No. 1-05-38 dated November 23, 2005 promulgating Law No. 76-03 on the status of Bank Al -Maghrib
- Dahir No. 1-05-178 dated February 14, 2006) promulgating Law No. 34-03 on credit institutions and related organizations (Banking Law)
Link to Banking Regulation
In September 2013, Fitch Ratings said in its analysis on the Moroccan banking sector that the Kingdom’s institutions enjoy a solid foundations thanks to a “moderate costs, a diversified deposits basis and a weak exposure to the European financial market that shielded the sector against the impact of the crisis in the Euro zone.” For all these reasons, the international rating agency believes that the Moroccan sector will have “a soft landing.”
Chart 1: Fig. n° 26: eEvolution of the shares of different categories of deposits (%):.
Chart 2n° 19: evolution of loans from credit institutions and similar agencies institutions (in billion dirhamsMAD)
Moroccan finance, a catalyst for initiatives
Pourquoi le Maroc ?
The insurance sector
The Insurance Sector, key actors
Insurance companies started operating in Morocco towards the second half of the 20th century, with the growing openness of the Kingdom onto its international commercial environment.
Concentrated mainly on the maritime sector, insurance companies in Morocco witnessed a boom after the Second World War, reaching the zenith of their activities in 1958 with nearly 300 companies on the market. One tenth of these firms were Moroccan.
In 1965, the setting of a cashinger’s threshold entailed a substantial decrease of the number of actors, from 130 to 27 in 1975, and less than 20 presently.
Tthe insurance sector, which grew in parallel to the banking sector, was markedwill later know by a wave of alliancesmergers, fusionacquisitions and restructuring moves. Insurance companies would, however, undergo a slower internationalization process compared to banks. Only CNIA Saada made an acquisition in 2009 with the takeover of the pan-African operator, Colina.
From a regulatory standpoint, Law n°17-99 related to insurances is the main text Law governing the sector. The law helps improve the rights of the insured and the beneficiariespolicy holders through a precise definition of insurance contracts and the introduction of new financial guarantees. The text law also enshrines introduced the notion of the solvability margin and consolidates the control and supervision of insurance and reinsurance companies as well as of intermediariesbrokers.
The law also contributed to regulatesing the contracts policies of insurance groups and to introduceding variable capital individual entities insurances and formalized theing bancassurance activity insurance.
The sector is regulated and supervisedcontrolled by the DAPS (Direction des Assurances et de la Prévoyance sociale, Direction du Ministère de l’Economie et des Finances.Ministry of Economy and Finance)
Fiscal yearIn 2012, the industry showed a great deal of dynamismmomentum of the sector, as illustrated in the annual report of the DAPS, with . In 2012, the market totaled MAD 26 billion of net written premiums written net of cancellations.
Thise figure represents an increase of 8.92 pc % compared to 2011. Life and capitalizationinsurance branch totaled MAD 8.78 billion, increasing by 14.71 pc % at the end of 2012.
Insurance industry: major players
Regulatory Authority : Ministry of Economy and Finance, Department of Insurance and Social Welfare (DAPS)
Public and private actorsplayers: : ATLANTA, AXA ASSISTANCE MAROC, AXA ASSURANCE MAROC, CNIA ASSURANCE, COMPAGNIE D’ASSURANCE TRANSPORT, ESSAADA, EULER HERMES ACMAR, ISSAAF MONDIAL ASSISTANCE, MAROC ASSISTANCE INTERNATIONALE, MAROCAINE VIE, Mutuelle Agricole Marocaine d’Assurances (MAMDA), Mutuelle Centrale Marocaine d’Assurances (MCMA), Mutuelle d’Assurances des Transporteurs Unis (MATU), ROYALE MAROCAINE D’ASSURANCES – AL WATANIYA (RMAWATANYA), SANAD, SOCIETE CENTRALE DE REASSURANCE (SCR), WAFA ASSURANCE, ZURICH ASSURANCES MAROC
Professional Associations and Federations : Fédération marocaine des sociétés d’assurances et de réassurance ,, Fédération nationale des agents et courtiers d’assurance au Maroc.
Moroccan companies in the African ranking of 2013 (Jeune Afrique): :
- Saham Finances (8th)
- Wafa Assurance (10th)
- Watanya (13th)
- Axa Assurance Maroc (15th)
- CNIA Saada Assurances (16th)
- Société Centrale de Réassurance (21st)
- Sanad (28th)
- Atlanta (30th)
- MCMA (32nd)
- Agma Lahlou-Tazi (35th)
- La Marocaine Vie (37th)
- Zurich (40th)
- CAT (50th)
Insurance: Main legal texts governing the industry:
Legal texts :
- Law n° 17-99 on related to the code of insurancesinsurance code, as completed by Law n°39-05;
- Decree n°2-03-50 dated on 22nd of May 2003, made for the purposes of Title III of Book II and Title X of Book III of Law No. 17-99 Insurance Code.
- Decree n°2-04-355 dated on the 2nd of November 2004, made for the purposes of Law n ° 17-99, being related to the Insurance Code (bilingual version).
- Decision of the Ministry of Finance and Privatization n°2013-05 dated on 26th of January 2005, related to compulsory insurances policies (bilingual version).
- Decision of the Ministry of Finance and Privatization n°2013-05 dated on 26th of January 2005, related to compulsory insurance policies.
For the full slate list of regulatory legal texts:
http://www.fmsar.org.ma/Reglementations-asssurances.html
The Capital market
The Moroccan capital market, an enhanced Legal Security
The Casablanca Stock Exchange was created in 1929 under the name «Office de compensation des valeurs mobilières». Its first purpose was to meet the growing needs for financial products and the internationalization of the Moroccan economy.
The Casablanca Stock Exchange was created in 1929 under the name «Office de compensation des valeurs mobilières». Its first purpose was to meet the growing needs for financial products and the internationalization of the Moroccan economy.
The capital market in Morocco is powered by 6 main groups of players: the Casablanca Stock Exchange, the capital market authority “CDVM”, the central depository “Maroclear“, brokerage firms, asset management companies, banks and insurance and reinsurance companies which are the main institutional investors in the capital market .
Since the early 2000s, all of these actors operated in a legal environment that gradually evolved towards a better regulation of various market activities and a strengthening of the safety of investments.
Key developments:
- 1997: enactment of Law No. 34-96 amending and completing Dahir No. 1-93-211 related to the Stock Exchange in October 1998, and creation of a central depository, Maroclear, established by the Law No. 35-96.
- 2000: the Stock Exchange changes its name to “Bourse de Casablanca SA” with a management board and supervisory board.
Capital markets: key players
Regulatory Authority : le Conseil Déontologique des Valeurs Mobilières, which changed namerecently became the “Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux” (AMMC) following the adoption of Law n°43-12 to become Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux (AMMC).
Public and Private Players : Ministère de l’Economie et des FinancesMinistry of economy and finance, Maroclearthe central depository (Maroclear), Bourse des valeurs dethe Casablanca Stock Exchange, , Sociétés de boursestock brokers (Alma Finance Group ; Artbourse ; Atlas Capital Bourse ; Attijari Intermédiation ; BMCE Capital Bourse ; BMCI Bourse ; Capital Trust Securities ; CDG Capital Bourse ; CFG Marchés ; Crédit du Maroc Capital ; Eurobourse ; ICF Al Wassit ; Integra Bourse ; MSIN ; Sogécapital Bourse ; Upline Securities ; Wafabourse), bBanks and insurance companies.
Professional Associations and Federations: : Association Professionnelle des Sociétés de BourseProfessional association of brokers(APSB)
Capital Markets: Main legal Ttexts Ggoverning the Ssector
- Law n° 1-93-211 of rebia ii 4th (September 21st 1993) related to the Stock Exchange (amended and completed by the laws n° 34-96, 29-00, 52-01, 45-06, 43-09);
- Dahir, law n°1-93-212 related to the Conseil Déontologique des Valeurs Mobilières and to the information required for companies conducting by individuals biding for savingspublic offerings;
- Dahir No. 1-04-21 1st Rabi I 1425 (21 April 2004) promulgating enacting the law No. 26-03 related to public bids on the stock market (Modified and compleemented by 46-06);.
- Dahir n°1-12-56 of 14 safar 1434 (28 december 2012) promulgating enacting the law n° 45-12 related to securities lendingoans;.
- Dahir n°1-13-21 of 1st joumada I 1434 (13 March 2013) enacpromulgating the law n°43-12 related to the Autorité marocaine du marché des capitauxMoroccan authority of capital market;
- Dahir n° 1-96-246 of 29 chaabane 1417 (9 January 1997) enacting the law n° 35-96 relatied to the setting up of a central depository (amended and completed by the law 43-02).
Asset Management
The Asset Management Sector
On December 28, 2012, net assets under management in mutual funds reached MAD 241.85 billion compared to 229.48 billion in 2011, representing an annual growth of 5.39%.
Key Figures illustrating the importance of collective asset management business and the attractiveness of Moroccan UCITs sector (end 2012):
- The total number of investors in OPCVM UCITs stood atreached nearly 20,000 people, ( individualsphysical and moral entities), from all the economic sectors of the economy.
- 18 asset management companies operate in the market, including with six bank credit institutions subsidiaries, three subsidiaries of corporate & investment banks, eight companies majority-owned by individuals, an insurance subsidiary of a company and a subsidiary of an UAE based investment company from the United Arab Emirates.
- There are 356 active UCITs standsin the market: 45 SICAV and 311 FCP.
Capital investmentPrivate equity industry in Morocco
According to the report of the Moroccan Association of Capital Investorsprivate equity (AMIC), the private equity sector has continued to evolve in 2011 with the creation setup of three new funds, bringing to 34 the number of funds under management.
These funds raised MAD 480 million in 2011, down 53%, bringing the amount raised since inception to nearly MAD 8 billion. The investment of these funds in 2011, hHowever, the assets under management fell by 48.3% to MAD 344 million instead of 665 million in 2010.
Asset Management & private equity: Key players
Regulatory Authority : The Conseil Déontologique des Valeurs Mobilières/Ethical Council of Securities which has changed its name torecently became the “Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux” (AMMC), under the recentlyfollowing the adoptioned of Law No. 43-12.
Public and Private players : asset management companies (AD Capital ; Atlas Capital management ; BMCE Capital Gestion ; BMCI Asset Management ; CAM Gestion ; Capital Trust Gestion ; CDG Capital Gestion ; CFG Gestion ; IRGAM ; MAROGEST ; Orange Asset Management ; RED MED ASSET MANAGEMENT ; RMA Capital ; Sogecapital Gestion ; Upline Capital Management ; Valoris Management ; Wafa Gestion ; Winéo Gestion ; Brookstone Partners Morocco ; CDG Capital Private Equity ; Privat Equity Initiative ; Upline Investment ; Valoris Capital ; Maghreb Titrisation) ; and Sstock bBrockers (see full list in the previous section)
Professional Associations and Federations : Association des Sociétés de Gestion et Fonds d’Investissement Marocains/Association of Moroccan Management Companies and Investment Funds, Association Marocaine des Investisseurs en Capital/Moroccan Association of Capital Investorsprivate equity.
Asset management: main legal texts governing the industry:
- Law n° 1-93-212 of 4 Rebia ii 1414 (21 september 1993) related to the conseil déontologique des valeurs mobilières and to the information required for companies conducting public offerings;
- Law N° 1-93-213 of 4 Rebia Ii (21 September 1993) related to UCITs ;
- Law N° 1-06-13 of 15 Moharrem 1427 (14 February 2006), enacpromulgating the law N° 41-05 related to ollective investment in venture capital
- Law n°1-13-21 of 1st Joumada I 1434 (13 March 2013) enacting the law n°43-12 related to the Moroccan authority of capital markets
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Constitutional monarchy
Head of State: King Mohammed VI, since July 1999
Area: 710.850 km ²
Population (2012): 32 million people
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