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Mauritania: lending & credit regulation

Regulated

Mauritania lending regulated by BCM under 2011 Law; MFI caps and EGR caps apply

Lead regulator:
Banque Centrale de Mauritanie
Key law:
Law No. 2011-052 on the Recovery of Debts
Last updated:
2026-07-12

The Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM) serves as the primary supervisor for all credit activities, including commercial banking and microfinance institutions. Lending is governed by a framework that mandates centralized authorization, strict prudential ratios, and specific provisioning standards for non-performing loans.

Consumer credit is subject to a statutory cap on the Effective Global Rate (EGR), which limits the total cost of borrowing including interest and fees. Additionally, microfinance institutions face strict exposure ceilings based on their classification category, while general debt recovery follows a specialized judicial procedure established in 2011.

Recent regulatory direction emphasizes financial transparency and risk management, with updated instructions on claim classification and covered bond frameworks. The regime remains restrictive for unlicensed entities, requiring prior Central Bank authorization for any credit institution activity.

Who regulates

  • Banque Centrale de Mauritanie

    Primary supervisor for credit institutions, microfinance, and covered bonds; sets prudential standards and lending rate caps.

    [1][2][3][4][5]

Core laws & rules

  • Law No. 2011-052 on the Recovery of Debts (2011)

    Establishes a specialized judicial procedure for banks and financial institutions to recover client debts, replacing the 1993 framework.

    [6]

  • Law No. ............./ PR Establishing the Legislative Framework for Covered Bonds (2024)

    Creates a comprehensive legislative framework for covered bonds issued by authorized credit institutions, requiring prior Central Bank authorization.

    [1]

Licensing & registration

  • Credit Institutions and Microfinance

    Prior Central Bank authorization is mandatory for credit institutions. Microfinance institutions are subject to specific prudential and management standards.

    [1][3][5]

Restrictions & warnings

  • Lending rates are capped by a unified annual effective global rate (EGR) covering all costs. Microfinance institutions face strict exposure ceilings: Category A (2.5 million ouguiyas), Category B (3 million), and Category C (2 million).

    [3]

  • Credit institutions must adhere to standardized claim classification (healthy, pre-doubtful, doubtful, compromised) and mandatory provisioning requirements.

    [2]

Direction of travel

  • Regulatory focus remains on prudential stability, financial transparency, and risk management, with recent updates to covered bond frameworks and claim provisioning rules.

    [1][2][4]

Sources

  1. Law No. ............./ PR. Establishing the Legislative Framework for Covered Bonds · 2024-12-18
  2. Instruction No. 03 GR/2020 Partially Amending Instruction 05/GR/2014 on the Classification of Claims and Provisioning · 2020-03-31
  3. Instruction No. 17/GR/2012 Amending Instruction No. 8/GR/2007 on Prudential and Management Standards for Microfinance Institutions · 2012-01-01
  4. Instruction No. 09/GR/07 on Financial Transparency Standards Applicable to Microfinance Institutions · 2009-01-01
  5. Instruction 08 on Prudential and Management Standards for Microfinance Institutions · 2007-01-01
  6. Law No. 2011-052 on the Recovery of Debts · 2011-01-01

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This guide is compiled automatically from 6 primary-source documents published by Mauritania's regulators, reviewed by RegAlert, and refreshed monthly (last updated 2026-07-12). It is not legal advice — always confirm requirements with the regulator or local counsel before acting.