Cross-border banking has been a criticalpart of Africa's financial history since colonialtimes. While the period after independence saw a wave ofnationalization across the continent, with many of thecolonial banks exiting, this trend was reversed in the 1980swith the arrival of financial liberalization. Failingstate-owned and private banks were sold mostly to globalinvestors or multinational banks. Increasing internationaland regional economic integration, including of financialservices, and deregulation further increased the number offoreign banks and by the mid-2000s many African bankingsystems were yet again dominated by foreign banks. Thisintroductory chapter documents trends in cross-borderbanking in Africa and the increasing shift in thecomposition of foreign banks in Africa. The next sectionprovides a short overview of financial systems in Africa toset the stage. Section two characterizes the population ofcross-border banks operating in Africa today, theirexpansion across the continent, and their importance in thehost countries. Section three explores the reasons for theexpansion of cross-border banking on the continent. Sectionfour assesses the different business models banks use toexpand across the continent as well as the characteristicsof their group structures. Section five concludes.
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