Ivory Coast - "Braço de Ferro" Luanda versus International Comunity

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Ivory Coast Banks Remain Closed After Seizure Attempt

Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- The Ivory Coast units of at least six banks including Societe Generale SA and BNP Paribas SA remained closed today, even after President Laurent Gbagbo seized the lenders to ensure they continue operating.

The head offices of Societe Generale’s SGBCI, Standard Chartered Plc’s local unit, Paribas’s BICICI, Citigroup’s subsidiary and West African lenders BIAO-Cote d’Ivoire and Banque Atlantique were all shuttered in Abidjan, the commercial capital. Nigeria’s Access Bank Plc said it a statement today that it has also suspended operations in Ivory Coast.

The banks closed this week citing security concerns following a disputed Nov. 28 election that left the country with two rival administrations. Alassane Ouattara is internationally recognized as the winner of the vote, while Gbagbo refuses to cede power, alleging fraud in the parts of the north.

The closure of the banks shows the “willingness of the international community to suffocate Ivory Coast,” Gnonzie Ouattara, minister of communications in Gbagbo’s administration, told reporters today in Abidjan. “These measures are political, not economic.”

Jeffrey French, a London-based spokesman for Citigroup, Laura Schalk, a spokeswoman for Societe Generale in Paris, and Ilias Catsaros, a spokesman for Paris-based BNP Paribas, all declined to comment in e-mails today. Shaun Gamble, a spokesman for Standard Chartered in London, reiterated yesterday’s statement, citing the “challenging operating environment” for the closure.

Gbagbo ordered the seizure of some of the lenders to “preserve jobs and make sure the Ivorians and the economic actors have access to their assets,” Ahoua Don Mello, Gbagbo’s spokesman, said on state-owned television yesterday.

To contact the reporter on this story: Olivier Monnier and Baudelaire Mieu in Abidjan via Accra at ebowers1@bloomberg.net .

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin at asguazzin@bloomberg.net .

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