FinBank S.A was incorporated in the year 2001 as a leasing company operating under the name Finalease. In the year 2003, it was converted into a fully-fledged commercial bank and changed its name to FinBank s.a (“FB”). Following a successful growth period, FinBank s.a attracted the attention of Access Bank Plc (“AB”), incorporated in Nigeria, which acquired a controlling stake in FB in 2008. Under Access Bank, FinBank’s business focus was in corporate banking and leveraged on the experience of its parent company to upscale its internal processes and policies to International Standards.

In 2014, an Investment Company named Dillux S.A incorporated in Mauritius that invests within different industries in East Africa and Great Lakes region acquired Finbank S.A from Access Bank. Under Dillux S.A, the bank was re-capitalised and embarked on diversifying the bank’s business model through investments in technology, growing the retail bank and making the corporate department more efficient.

Finbank s.a is gaining the status of “the most innovative bank in Burundi” as it’s bringing into the market innovative solutions technology based such as Mobile Banking (Pesaflash); Agency Banking (Finbank Kumuhana) and strategic partnerships with various companies such as our partnership with Cassava Fintech to launch the first mobile money based micro-lending module. Additionally, we’re the first and only bank to partner with the Burundian Tax Authority – Office Burundaise des Recettes (OBR) to launch an electronic customs tax payment service.

The long-term aim is to drive financial inclusion and empower the communities within the overall Great Lakes region.