Editing Economy of Guinea-Bissau (section)

=== Financial sector ===
The financial sector of Guinea-Bissau is relatively underdeveloped: in 2013, financial intermediation accounted for 4% of GDP,<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url =http://www.africaneconomicoutlook.org/fileadmin/uploads/aeo/2015/CN_data/Cn_Long_FR/Guinee-Bissau_2015.pdf|title =African Economic Outlook 2015: Guinea-Bissau|access-date =20 January 2016|url-status =dead|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20150919110503/http://www.africaneconomicoutlook.org/fileadmin/uploads/aeo/2015/CN_data/Cn_Long_FR/Guinee-Bissau_2015.pdf|archive-date =19 September 2015}}</ref> banking penetration is below 1% of the population (IMF 2013. Article IV Consultations – Guinea-Bissau, IMF Country Report No 13/197) and access to finance is cited as the second most important constraint for businesses.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url = http://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Project-and-Operations/West_Africa_Policy_Note_-_Providing_Efficient_Banking_Services_in_a_Fragile_Environment.pdf|title = Providing Efficient Banking Services in a Fragile Environment: Structure, Performance and Perspectives of the Banking Sector in Guinea-Bissau|access-date = 20 January 2016|publisher = African Development Bank|last = Arvanitis|first = Yannis}}</ref> As of 2015, only four banks were operating in the country. According to the IMF, regional private foreign banks held about 65% of shares in the Bissau-Guinean banking system (IMF 2013). Banks are regulated by the [[WAEMU]] authorities. In the aftermath of the civil war (1998/1999), private sector credit had fallen below 1% of GDP. In 2003 the balance sheets of banks amounted to EUR 21.3 million. Since then credit to the economy has risen to nearly 13.8% of GDP.<ref name=":0" />