Bloomfield assigns BBB note to Camtel

The Pan-African financial rating agency Bloomfield Investment, founded by the Ivorian Stanistlas Zézé, awarded the BBB notes for a positive perspective in long term and 3A with a stable Outlook in the short term, to the Camtel telecommunications company.

This public telecoms operator becomes the first Cameroonian company to get a rating. According to the score card of Camtel, this note follows from positive factors such as the fact that Camtel is "a key player in the development of the sector" of telecoms, which "is of strategic interest to the State of Cameroon, which holds Camtel 100%.

In addition, Bloomfield noted that this sector of telecoms in the country contains an important 'growth potential' and the State demonstrates its confidence in the telecoms operator. This materialized a few weeks ago by the 4th Camtel nationwide mobile licensing, already operating fixed telephony.

Moreover, Bloomfield noted that the financial situation of Camtel is characterized by "a fragile financial structure, of insufficient cash flow ' and above all, a "chronic cash deficit born of a significant capital need, highlighting the flexibility and financial dependence of the company.

From this point of view, the financial statements of the company at 31st December 2013 showed a cash deficit of 4.9 billion Cfa francs, against 3.2 billion Cfa fransc in 2012.

The same State reveal huge debt, estimated at 141.2 billion Cfa francs at the end of December 2013 (compared with 91.7 billion in 2012), despite a net profit of slightly more than 3 billion Cfa francs recorded at the end of the year. Net income also essentially pulled by income excluding ordinary activities was (5.2 billion Cfa francs).

According to Bloomfield, this financial rating gives Camtel the tone of "the will of the Government of Cameroon to put in place tools for good governance and transparency in government business enterprises. A notation that falls under "legal uncertainty", but which is perhaps an indication of what might soon attain the first bond launched by a company in Cameroon.