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SIPEM Banque is a local bank serving both micro and very small businesses, as well as mature companies whose activities are expanding. Created in 1991 by the Association pour la Promotion de l’Entreprenariat à Madagascar, SIDI, and other local investors, it is one of the Grande Ile’s oldest financial institutions, and the one with the strongest local roots. SIPEM offers a variety of financial services to meet the needs of its highly diversified clientele: overdrafts, cash lines, savings, loans, cash withdrawal cards, etc. With its network of 29 branches, SIPEM Banque is present in all Madagascar’s main towns, and its business is mainly urban.
Madagascar is a very poor country. According to the UN, 74.1% of the population lives on less than USD 1.90 a day. The Big Island has one of the lowest human capital indices in the world, with very weak public infrastructure, health and education systems. Madagascar is also one of the countries most affected by the consequences of climate change (three cyclones a year on average, severe drought in the south).
SIPEM Banque is a microfinance bank that serves microentrepreneurs in both urban and peri-urban areas of the Grande Ile: a large proportion of its customers are microenterprises for which the average loan is EUR 254, or around 15% of GDP/capita. Its mixed positioning makes it an interesting institution on the Gasy market, enabling it to target small structures and then gradually support them as they grow. By upgrading from MFI to bank status in 2013, SIPEM has also been able to develop its range of financial services for its customers (overdraft facility, cash withdrawal cards, e-clearing).
