The Banking Industry

The Mauritian banking industry comprises 19 banks, of which 5 local banks, 12 foreign banks-predominantly subsidiaries and a few branches, 1 is a joint venture, and 1 is licensed as a private bank. All the banks are licensed by the Bank of Mauritius to carry out banking business locally and internationally.

The banking industry is characterised by the wide range of services provided. Besides traditional banking facilities, banks offer card-based payment services, such as credit and debit cards internet banking and phone banking facilities. Specialised services such as fund administration, custodial services, trusteeship, structured lending, structured trade finance, international portfolio management, investment banking, private client activities, treasury and specialised finance are also offered by banks. The international banks offer a wide range of global banking and financial services to corporate, institutional and private clients. Some of the biggest and most reputable international banks are present in Mauritius and actively carry out international cross border activities.

In spite of the various shocks facing the international banking landscape over the recent years, the domestic banking sector has shown satisfactory performance as evidenced by the official figures available from the Financial Stability Report of the Bank of Mauritius of December 2020.