Fitch agency has affirmed that Attijariwafa Bank acquisition of a 55.2% stake in Société Générale’s Ghanaian subsidiary will not affect its BB+ rating assigned to the Moroccan Bank with stable outlook.
The acquisition is likely to be ratings neutral for the Moroccan bank, Fitch says. Société Générale Ghana (SGG) had assets of less than USD1 billion, or around 1% of Attijariwafa Bank’s total assets and 11% of its total equity, at end-2025 means the acquisition is unlikely to materially increase the Moroccan bank exposure to the rest of Africa or pressure its capital ratios.
“We expect SGG to contribute only modestly to the Bank’s assets and net income (3% of Attijariwafa Bank’s net income in 2025) over the medium term as domestic growth in Morocco should be broadly in line with the growth of Attijariwafa Bank’s other African operations”, say the experts of Fitch Ratings.
The acquisition will not significantly increase Attijariwafa Bank exposure to the rest of Africa, although it may slightly diversify the Moroccan Bank’s earnings base due to Ghanaian banks’ healthy profitability metrics.
The sector’s pre-tax return on equity and return on assets were 22% and 4.3%, respectively, in 8M26. Exposure to the region fell to 24% of consolidated assets at end-1H26 (end-2023: 26%). While this remains high, granular country exposures mitigate risks at group level. Fitch expects continued growth in Morocco to support the relative weighting of domestic operations; Moroccan assets grew by about 4% in 1H26, broadly in line with growth in the rest of Africa.
The transaction should also have no material effect on Attijariwafa Bank’s regulatory capital ratios, given SGG’s modest size and the Moroccan bank’s strong earnings generation.
As Attijariwafa Bank’s internal capital generation is underpinned by its healthy return on equity (1H26: 17.5%, annualized), Fitch expects its common equity Tier 1 ratio (end-2025: 10.2%) to remain at 10%-11% in the near term.
According to Fitch agency, Attijariwafa Bank also retains capital flexibility and could strengthen its capital position, if necessary, through dividend adjustments or additional core capital from shareholders. The Moroccan bank’s exposure to Ghanaian cedi volatility and any resulting impact on its regulatory capital ratios should be very limited, given the subsidiary’s small size.
The transaction takes place as the operating environment for Ghanaian Banks improves. Macroeconomic conditions are stabilizing following volatility associated with the 2024 sovereign debt restructuring.
Fitch’s upgrade of Ghana’s long-term Issuer Default rating to B+ with stable outlook in May reflected a sharp decline in government debt relative to GDP and a marked increase in international reserves, which reduced external liquidity risks. The Positive Outlook reflects Fitch expectation of continued fiscal prudence and a further build-up of external buffers.
In December 2025, Fitch upgraded the Moroccan bank’s rating to ‘BB+’ with stable outlook due to a lower contribution from vulnerable overseas operations to total assets and revenue, a record of strong performance demonstrating the resilience of its business model, and stronger capital ratios.
