Regulatory Alerts2020-12-21
Regulation No. 04/19/CEMAC/UMAC/CM on the Global Effective Rate, Usury Repression, and Publication of Banking Conditions in CEMAC
The Ministerial Committee of the Central African Monetary Union (UMAC) adopted Regulation No. 04/19/CEMAC/UMAC/CM, which defines rules for the Global Effective Rate (TEG) of credit, represses usury, and mandates the publication of banking conditions and financial service fees within the CEMAC region. The regulation specifies how the TEG is calculated, what it includes and excludes, requires its communication to borrowers, and establishes a framework for the Monetary Policy Committee to set quarterly usury rates for different loan categories and borrowers, prohibiting loans exceeding these rates. It also obliges financial institutions to regularly publish their banking conditions and prices for financial services, centralizes this data through National Economic and Financial Committees (CNEFs) and the BEAC for comparative analysis, and outlines administrative and criminal sanctions for non-compliance with TEG, usury, and transparency requirements.