MOROCCO – Morocco’s largest-bank Attijariwafa Bank has won Global Finance magazine’s “Best investment bank in Morocco for the year 2022” award for the seventh year in a row.

The prestigious American business magazine looks at a wide range of criteria for the award, including bank performance, market share, and the size of the bank’s deals over the year in question.

Attijariwafa Bank claimed a number of similar awards in recent years. The banking group made headlines for winning “Best Moroccan Bank of the Year” in 2021.

Attijari finance Corp, a consulting arm to Attijariwafa Group, equally claimed the “Best investment Bank” award from the EMEA Finance Magazine.

The Moroccan banking group boasts a stable outlook thanks to a large market share of 25% and quality management, according to a recent Fitch rating report.

The bank has a national rating slightly higher than the average rating for Moroccan banks, is a leading bank nationally with a strong foothold in corporate finance.

It also enjoys an extensive presence in Africa, diversifying its business model and adding to its profits, the report notes.

In addition to a strong presence in corporate finance, the bank also has a record for actively funding small and medium-sized businesses through various government programs.

Last year, the banking group funded 12,000 young Moroccan entrepreneurs, with a 41% contribution to the Intialaka funding program.

Giving MAD 2.7 billion (US$284,6 million) in loans to young Moroccan business makers in 2021, the bank issued over 51,600 loans to Moroccan businesses as part of the Damane Oxygen Program.

The program aims to support businesses stay afloat throughout the COVID-induced economic crisis.

With a budget cover of  MAD 21.5 billion (US$2.2 billion), Attijariwafa Bank holds a 37% share of all funds dedicated to the Damane Oxygen program, according to the bank’s 2021 financial statement.

Fitch ratings

Earlier, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Attijariwafa Bank’s (AWB) Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at ‘BB’ with a Stable Outlook.

Fitch has also affirmed AWB’s Viability Rating (VR) at ‘bb’ and upgraded the bank’s National Long-Term Rating to ‘AA(mar)’ from ‘AA-(mar)’.

The ‘BB’ Long-Term IDRs of AWB is driven by its VR and underpinned by potential support from the Moroccan authorities.

The VR reflects the bank’s dominant market share in Morocco’s financial services sector, a strong domestic franchise, stable business model, high management quality, and a good execution record.

AWB’s National Rating is one notch above direct local peers’ but below the subsidiaries of large French banking groups as these benefit from potential support from their foreign shareholders.

Liked this article? Subscribe to DealStreet Africa News, our regular email newsletter with the latest news, deals, and insights from Africa’s business, economy, and more. SUBSCRIBE