Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, the state-owned banking giant, has inaugurated the first branch that is dedicated to the Ethiopian diaspora. Located at Legehar, the branch was inaugurated on October 4, 2019, with the presence of Bacha Gina, president of the CBE, and Selamawit Dawit, president of the Ethiopian Diaspora Agency. The opening of the branch is a manifestation of the commitment of the Bank to serve the Ethiopian diaspora and meet their demands, according to Bacha. Though there is no official data that shows the exact figure of the diaspora population, different statistics indicate that there is about three million Ethiopian diaspora residing abroad. Mortgage loans, foreign exchange and international banking services, as well as other alternative banking options, are the services to be provided by the new branch. "CBE has also been designing a new investment project that will be unveiled soon to benefit the diaspora," Bacha disclosed during the inauguration ceremony. In the last fiscal year, the Bank has earned a gross profit of 17.9 billion Br. Its total assets have also reached 712 billion Br, registering a 145 billion Br increase from the previous year.

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