01921cas a2200253 a 4500 AALejournalIMF013664 230101c9999 xx r poo 0 0eng d 20.00 USD 9781484348222 2616-5333 BD-DhAAL BD-DhAAL Imam, Patrick. West African Economic and Monetary Union : Financial Depth and Macrostability / Patrick Imam, Christina Kolerus. Washington, D.C. : International Monetary Fund, 2013. 1 online resource (45 pages) Departmental Papers <strong>Off-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required <strong>On-Campus Access:</strong> No User ID or Password Required Electronic access restricted to authorized BRAC University faculty, staff and students The financial system in the WAEMU remains largely bank-based. The banking sector comprises 106 banks and 13 financial institutions, which together hold more than 90 percent of the financial system's assets (about 54 percent of GDP at end-2011). Five banks account for 50 percent of banking assets. The ownership structure of the sector is changing fast, with the rapid rise of foreign-owned (pan-African) banks. This contributes to higher competition but also rising heterogeneity in the banking system, with large and profitable cross-country groups competing with often weaker country-based (and sometime government-owned) banks. Nonbank financial institutions are developing quickly, notably insurance companies, but remain overall small. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the banking system. Mode of access: Internet Kolerus, Christina. Departmental Papers; Departmental Paper ; No. 2013/005 Full text available on IMF http://elibrary.imf.org/view/journals/087/2013/005/087.2013.issue-005-en.xml IMF e-Library