• Retail investors in Cameroon invested 25.9 billion CFA francs ($45.9 million) in government securities as of Jan. 31, 2026.
• Retail participation remains marginal across the CEMAC region, representing just 3% of outstanding Treasury securities.
• Banks acting as Primary Dealers (SVT) hold 63.2% of the market, reinforcing their dominance in the regional debt market.

Retail investors in Cameroon invested CFA25.9 billion ($45.9 million) in government securities issued by CEMAC states as of Jan. 31, 2026, according to data from the regional Treasury securities market operated by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC).

The BEAC manages the regional debt market for the six-member Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), which includes Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Chad and the Central African Republic.

However, retail investment in Cameroon continues to lag other countries in the region.

Gabonese retail investors subscribed CFA71.7 billion in government securities, nearly three times the amount invested by Cameroonian individuals, according to official data.

Retail investors in Congo also injected more than CFA70 billion into CEMAC government securities over the same period, again almost three times the level recorded in Cameroon.

Chad stands out even more strongly. Although analysts classify Chad among the smaller participants in the CEMAC public securities market alongside Equatorial Guinea and the Central African Republic, the country shows a stronger culture of investment in Treasury instruments.

BEAC data shows that Chadian retail investors subscribed CFA108 billion in government securities as of Jan. 31, 2026, roughly four times the level recorded in Cameroon, which observers often describe as the economic engine of the sub-region.

Retail Investors Remain Marginal

However, retail investors remain a marginal investor category across the entire CEMAC region. Retail investors held only 3% of outstanding Treasury securities as of Jan. 31, 2026, representing total investments of CFA287.6 billion.

Institutional investors such as insurance companies and pension funds demonstrated stronger participation. These institutions invested CFA1,808.8 billion, which represented 19.1% of total outstanding securities over the same period.

Credit institutions that are not accredited as Primary Dealers (Spécialistes en Valeurs du Trésor, SVT) held 13.7% of the market, representing CFA1,297.3 billion in securities.

Repurchase Agreements Allow SVTs to Retain Securities

Banks accredited as Primary Dealers (SVT) remain the dominant investors in the regional market. Since the launch of the regional government securities market in December 2011, these banks have accumulated the largest share of Treasury securities. BEAC data shows that SVT portfolios reached CFA5,973.6 billion as of Jan. 31, 2026, representing 63.2% of the total outstanding market.

This dominance reflects the reluctance of SVT banks to sell securities to other categories of investors, which increases their exposure to sovereign risk. Regulations require SVTs to support the secondary market by selling at least 30% of the securities they purchase annually on the primary market.

In practice, these intermediaries often trade securities among themselves rather than selling them to retail investors or other institutions. This practice concentrates most securities within SVT portfolios.

Interbank repurchase agreements (repos) illustrate this trend. A repo allows institutions to exchange tradable securities for cash for a fixed period, providing short-term liquidity. Official data shows that repo transactions on the secondary government securities market reached CFA826.9 billion in January 2026.During the same period, investors purchased CFA287 billion worth of securities, which was nearly three times less than the value of repo transactions.

Brice R. Mbodiam (Business in Cameroun)