The Banking Commission of the West African Monetary Union (WAMU or Union) is the community banking supervisory body for all eight WAMU Member States of Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. It stems from the will of the authorities of the WAMU Member States to establish a community organization to ensure “... uniform and more effective supervision of banking activities and integration of the banking sector in the West African Monetary Union...”, as expressed in the WAMU Treaty.

The WAMU Banking Commission exercises the powers conferred upon in it by its governing instruments in the territories of each of the eight WAMU Member States. It is an organ of the Union that operates independently and separately from other WAMU bodies and institutions such as the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO or Central Bank) which provides its secretarial services. The WAMU Banking Commission was established by the Convention of April 24, 1990, signed in Ouagadougou by the Ministers of Finance of the WAMU Member States. This Convention was replaced by the Convention of April 6, 2007, signed in Lomé, during the implementation of the WAMU and BCEAO Institutional Reform, adopted by the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the Union on January 20, 2007.

The Institutional Reform became effective on April 1, 2010. The headquarters of the WAMU Banking Commission are located in Abidjan, pursuant to an “Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire and the BCEAO on the establishment, in Abidjan, of the WAMU Banking Commission and its privileges and immunities in the territory of Côte d’Ivoire” concluded on October 10, 1990. The Convention Governing the WAMU Banking Commission and its Annex, which forms an integral part thereof, include provisions pertaining to the organization, operation, and powers of the Commission.

These provisions may be amended by the WAMU Council of Ministers without undergoing a ratification or approval procedure. Accordingly, as part of the process of adapting the WAMU supervisory mechanism to international standards, especially as they relate to the resolution of banking crises, the WAMU Council of Ministers, by Decision No. 010 of 29/09/2017/CM/UMOA on September 27, 2017, amended the Annex to the Convention Governing the WAMU Banking Commission, with an effective date of January 1, 2018.

According to its governing instruments, the WAMU Banking Commission is responsible for “maintaining a sound and secure banking system in WAMU, including through the supervision of the regulated institutions and the resolution of banking crises. It shall also endeavor to protect depositors and contribute to maintaining the stability of the regional financial system”. The institutions under the supervision of the WAMU Banking Commission include credit institutions, financial companies, decentralized financial systems and electronic money institutions as well as any other entity under its supervision.