African Banking Rankings 2025: Notable Absence of Tunisian Banks in Top 20
The 2025 ranking of the top 100 African banks published by African Business highlights a notable absence of Tunisian banks in the top 20. Despite this, eight Tunisian banks are featured in the top 100, indicating encouraging progress compared to 2024. While Tunisia is gaining visibility on the continent, the gap with African giants remains significant.
Top 20 African Banks: South African and North African Dominance
The 2025 ranking is dominated by banks from South Africa, Morocco, and Egypt. Standard Bank Group from South Africa occupies the first place, followed by FirstRand, Absa, and Nedbank, all from South Africa. Morocco is represented in the top 20 by Attijariwafa Bank and Banque Centrale Populaire, while Egypt stands out with the National Bank of Egypt and Banque Misr. Other major institutions like Ecobank Transnational, United Bank for Africa, and Mauritius Commercial Bank complete this leading group. These banks distinguish themselves with their high Tier 1 capital and presence in several African markets, key factors for dominating the ranking.
Although several North African and Sub-Saharan countries occupy the top spots, no Tunisian bank is featured in the top 20. This situation reflects persistent structural challenges in the Tunisian banking sector: limited capitalization, a fragmented market, and reduced international presence. Tunisia therefore remains behind the South African, Moroccan, and Egyptian giants, despite the central role of its institutions in the national economy.
Tunisian Banks on the Rise
However, Tunisia can rejoice at the presence of eight banks in the top 100 African banks. The first, Banque Internationale Arabe de Tunisie, ranks 34th, followed by Banque Nationale Agricole at 39th, BH Bank at 46th, Amen Bank at 60th, Société Tunisienne de Banque at 66th, Attijari Bank at 78th, UIB at 84th, and ATB at 98th. Compared to 2024, these institutions have improved their Tier 1 capital and progressed in the ranking, testifying to the consolidation and improvement of Tunisian banks' performance on the continent. The interactive table available on Datawrapper illustrates these progressions in detail.
This means that progress in the top 100 is encouraging, but the absence from the top 20 has real consequences for the Tunisian economy. It can limit the country's attractiveness to foreign investors, restrict local businesses' access to competitive financing, and hinder the participation of Tunisian banks in continental financial initiatives, such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
To improve their competitiveness and aspire to the top 20, Tunisian banks will therefore need to strengthen their capitalization, consider mergers and acquisitions to consolidate the market, and develop a more active international presence. These measures would not only allow them to compete with North African and South African banks but also contribute to Tunisia's sustainable economic development.
