Hassatou Diop N’Sele - Afrikan Heroes

African Development Bank Group appoints Hassatou Diop N’Sele as Vice-President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer

October 11, 2022

The African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org) today announced the appointment of Hassatou Diop N’Sele, as Vice-President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Mrs. Diop, a Senegalese national, has been acting in the role since November 2021.

N’Sele, an accomplished professional with over 30 years of banking and finance experience, joined the African Development Bank in 1999 as Senior Treasury Officer. She successively held positions of Principal Treasury Officer, Chief Treasury Officer and Manager of the Capital Markets and Financial Operations Division, before being appointed Treasurer of the African Development Bank Group in 2015.

As treasurer, she has provided strategic leadership to enhance the bank’s fund raising, investments and hedging activities. She led the successful global expansion of the African Development Bank’s capital markets activities. She leads a diverse team of highly seasoned professionals, managing over $33 billion under the bank’s borrowing portfolio, overseeing the group’s investment of over $25 billion liquidity in multicurrency portfolios, and supervising its hedging activities, banking relationships and back-office operations.

N’Sele spearheaded the African Development Bank Group’s entry into the green bonds and social bonds markets. Among her key achievements in capital markets are award winning transactions and recognition, including the $3 billion Fight Covid-19 bond launched in 2020. This made the African Development Bank the largest multilateral development bank issuer of social bonds to date.

N’Sele has led key strategic and technical financial initiatives geared towards optimizing the institution’s financial capacity. She established the blueprint for its long-term financial sustainability. She also played a key role in the design of the Special Temporary Callable Capital Increase under the oversight of the president and vice-president for Finance.

As treasurer, N’Sele is providing strategic and technical leadership in discussions on the bank’s financial and risk bearing capacity, and the development of new financial products. She drove the design of the framework for the long-term financial sustainability of the bank group from 2018 to 2019.

N’Sele also provided strategic support to discussions with member countries on general capital increases for the African Development Bank Group, replenishments of the African Development Fund, and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative. She is spearheading discussions with rating agencies on key financial matters. Under her leadership, the African Development Bank successfully transitioned from Libor[1] and introduced hybrid capital in its financing toolkit.

Upon being notified of her appointment, N’Sele said: “It is an honor and a privilege to serve the African Development Bank Group’s powerful and formidable development mandate. I welcome the opportunity to continue working with my dedicated and talented colleagues at the African Development Bank as we to keep making a difference.”

Commenting on the appointment, the president of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina said: “I am pleased to appoint Mrs. Hassatou Diop N’Sele as Vice-President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Hassatou is a seasoned finance professional with extensive experience and outstanding contributions at the African Development Bank. She will provide leadership for the top-rate finance team at the bank, in the formulation and implementation of its financial strategies and transformation agenda, and in support and furtherance of its development mandate.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Another Feather as African Bank joins Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network

June 17, 2020

Ann-Charlotte Eliasson, VP, Head of EU Bond Listings and Sustainable Debt

The African Development Bank has joined the Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network through which socially responsible issuers are provided a unique opportunity to bring attention to their concrete actions. With this development, the African Bank has become one of the world’s largest issuers of social bonds, in the Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network (NSBN). The NSBN is a global and publicly available platform designed to improve transparency in the market for green, social and sustainability bonds. Ten Bank bonds were added to the platform, including its landmark $3 billion Fight COVID-19 Social Bond launched in March 2020, the largest Social Bond ever launched at the time in international capital markets. Fight COVID-19 remains today the largest dollar-denominated Social Bond. It aims to help alleviate the economic and social impact of the pandemic on livelihoods and Africa’s economies.

By joining the Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network, socially responsible issuers are provided a unique opportunity to bring attention to their concrete actions in terms of financing climate change and green growth. “Nasdaq welcomes the inclusion of the African Development Bank on our Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network especially with its Fight Covid-19 Social Bond, launched to alleviate the impact of the pandemic on African economies and livelihoods,” said Ann-Charlotte Eliasson, VP, Head of EU Bond Listings and Sustainable Debt. “We are proud to offer visibility to an issuer with such a strong social mandate, which the world needs more than ever, especially in these challenging times.”

Hassatou Diop N’Sele, Treasurer of the African Development Bank

Since the launch of Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network in December last year, more than 40 issuers from 13 countries have added over 4,000 bonds to the platform, including the Nordic Investment Bank, HSBC and Fannie Mae. “The Nasdaq Sustainable Bond platform allows us to showcase our work in combating poverty and in helping move the African continent forward. Our Fight Covid-19 social bond is about saving lives and livelihoods,” said Hassatou Diop N’Sele, Treasurer of the African Development Bank.

The African Development Bank established its Social Bond framework in 2017 and has raised the equivalent of $5.5 billion through five transactions supporting 89 eligible social projects in 28 African countries as of 31 December 2019. In 2018, the Bank was designated “Second most impressive social or sustainability bond issuer” at the Global Capital SRI Awards and the Bank’s NOK 1 billion 3-year Social Bond issued in 2019 was awarded “Social Bond of the Year” by Environmental Finance.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

African Development Bank Makes History; launches US$ 2 billion 1.625% Global Benchmark

September 14, 2019

Africa’s premier development finance institution the African Development Bank has launched and priced a US$ 2 billion 3-year Global Benchmark bond which will be due by 16 September 2022. This is the Bank’s first US$ benchmark of the year. The Bond which was launched on September 11 is the Bank’s second Global Benchmark of 2019, following the EUR 1 billion 10-year priced in March 2019. This has brought the amount raised by the Bank to US$ 4.4 billion and executed 61% of its borrowing program for the year.

This very transaction received strong support from investors globally which is a sign of level of confidence investors have on the Bank as its order books has reached US$ 2.8 billion with 53 investors participating. This high quality of the order book is illustrated by the strong participation of Central Banks and Official Institutions, taking 64% of the allocations.

The African Development Bank is taking advantage of favorable investor sentiment post summer break to access the 3-year tenor, in spite of volatile market conditions ahead of the Fed Meeting the following week. The mandate was announced on Tuesday, September 10, with Initial Pricing Thoughts of Mid-Swaps + 13 basis points (bps) area.

The transaction met strong interest from the outset, with Indications of Interest in excess of US$ 1.8 billion (excluding Joint-Lead Managers interest) when order books officially opened at 08:00 London time the following morning, with initial price guidance of Mid-Swaps + 13bps area.

Momentum continued throughout the European morning, with orders in excess of US$ 2.5 billion around 11:20 London time. At this time, final pricing was set at Mid-Swaps + 13bps. Following the close of the order book in the US, the size of the transaction was set at US$ 2 billion by 14:20 London time.

The transaction was priced at 16:24 London time with a re-offer yield of 1.679%, equivalent to a spread of 8.75bps vs UST 1.5% 15 September 2022, the issuer’s tightest print vs US Treasuries to date.

Speaking of the development, Hassatou Diop N’Sele, Treasurer of the African Development Bank said that the Bank is delighted with this successful dollar Global Benchmark, and particularly pleased by both the very high quality of the order book and the solid participation of African Central Banks. The African Development Bank achieved its tightest ever spread to US Treasuries, and grateful to her investors across the world for this outcome, and the financing it will bring to the African continent.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry.