Government Bonds: Attracting Non-bank Actors Remains Challenging

As Cameroon celebrates ten years of effective presence on the financial market with over FCFA 3,000 billion raised therein, stakeholders are reflecting on how to widen the market base, notably by attracting non-bank actors to develop what they call the secondary financial market. The announcement that over FCFA 3,306 billion was raised in the money market in ten years and over FCFA 2, 998 billion already reimbursed speaks of a State that borrows wisely and refunds promptly. This makes the State signature the more credible.

Treasury officials of the Ministry of Finance, the banks and the Bank of Central African States have been unanimous that the primary compartment of the market has been resoundingly successful given the rate of adherence each time government bonds are put on the market. They all agree that while consolidating the gains, government needs to look for ways of making the component of the secondary market more adapted, flexible and active so that there can be exchange and the reinjection of more liquidity into the system.

Different speakers during a ceremony to celebrate the country’s ten years of presence on the financial market in Douala last Friday December 17, 2021 harped on the need to aptly publicise the government bonds each time they are issued and to carry out in depth education of the public on how and why they should adhere.

They held that individuals have the resources and the banks can play intermediary roles to get them subscribe to the government bonds, pump money into the economy and reap the fruits in terms of interest which government pays regularly. Success in attracting non-bank actors, they agreed, would channel much money floating in the informal to the formal sector of the economy, ascertain better profitability for those who would have subscribed and improve adherence to banking systems.

Better regulation would equally allow for the State to get money even from across the globe given that needs might be within but resources are widespread.  It is not new to anyone that the digital currency is leaving no economy indifferent. Regulating the sector and bringing on board the different actors would equally be developing the secondary financial market. 

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