Banco Espírito Santo Angola differs in its approach to banking in that it offers customer-oriented services tailored to local needs – providing dedicated branches for specific types of customers and covering rural areas as yet unpenetrated by larger institutions

Banco Espírito Santo Group is one of Portugal’s largest international banking institutions. Its Angolan subsidiary, Banco Espírito Santo Angola (BESA) gives the bank a foothold in one of southern Africa’s fastest-growing economies, and links Angola to a global network with a major presence throughout the Portuguese-speaking world. Since 2001, BESA’s global connections, products, and services have attracted some of Angola’s larger companies, giving BESA a different clientele than the country’s other new banks.

BESA has pursued a targeted approach to corporate and personal banking clients, aiming to win business from medium- and large-sized firms as well as higher-income individuals. Along with the corporate services that an internationally connected bank can provide, BESA offers Angola’s first portfolio of private banking services that provide personalized investment management. BESA Chairman Dr. Álvaro Sobrinho explains that BESA has built itself from the ground up to go after specific segments of the market. “Our bank is basically designed for corporate activities and for medium- and high-income personal banking.”

Dr. Sobrinho says that BESA is using this customer-centered approach to guide its expansion beyond Luanda. “Our goal is to have a network of sophisticated branches that meet international standards – for our operations in the provinces, we have 3 or 4 different types of branches to offer specific services depending on the local market. In two months, we can have a branch set up that is tailor-made for a particular clientele.” He believes that this makes BESA both a different kind of workplace, and a different bank with which to do business. “Separating our different kinds of business is a competitive advantage, because our customers don’t have to wait in long lines like you see in other banks. Plus, our team is young and motivated, and there’s not too much stress in our everyday operations.”

Álvaro Sobrinho, Chairman of the Board of Directors, BESA

In Dr. Sobrinho’s opinion, “BESA is actually the most international Angolan bank. When we entered the Angolan market we created a direct link with London so we would have all the mechanisms of online exchange, like any other international bank.” The bank’s international networks and focus on larger firms is giving it a role in the regional economy that reaches beyond Angola’s borders, connecting BESA to the opportunities available in the larger market of sub-Saharan Africa. “Today, our strategy includes the internationalization of BESA itself. The bank will open branches in both the Congos and in Namibia, and create a kind of financial group that is new to the region.”

One of BESA’s challenges has been finding personnel that are qualified to deliver the high-level services that the bank offers its corporate and personal clients. Dr. Sobrinho explains that BESA has addressed this hurdle by taking its own educational initiatives, opening a training school to give prospective employees a feel for the business. “Banking has made great strides in this country, because of the entry of many new banks. However, the number of professionals has not proportionally increased. That’s why we’re investing in training, having our older generation educate the younger generation of the bank, teaching them about our practices and general bank operations.”