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Standard Bank Eyes Investment in Bishoftu International Airport

Feb 23 , 2026

Standard Bank, one of Africa's major financial institutions, has expressed interest in financing the Bishoftu International Airport (BIA).

Under construction 40Km southeast of Addis Abeba, for a projected cost of over 12 billion dollars, the Airport will be a major greenfield mega‑hub planned to replace Addis Ababa Bole as Ethiopian Airlines’ primary hub and to become the largest airport in Africa. When completed in three years, it will handle over 100 million passengers annually year.

According to Standard Bank Chief Executive Officer for Corporate & Investment Banking, Luvuyo Masinda, the Bank is also monitoring opportunities to enter the Ethiopian banking industry. However, he stated the need for policy changes in Ethiopia to "instill confidence before making any moves." He identified foreign currency challenges and the 49pc cap on share purchases in domestic banks as major hurdles.

"Domestic capital formation in Africa is substantial, with estimates suggesting the continent holds approximately four trillion dollars in investable7 capital, including pension funds, insurance assets, sovereign funds, and bank balance sheets," he said addressing the African Market Conference opened today in Cape Town, South Africa. "It remains underutilised, with the majority sitting idle."

However, Masinda attributed uneven mobilisation of capital to regulatory constraints, limited secondary market depth, and project preparation bottlenecks.

"Capital flows are highly responsive to policy credibility," said Masinda.

According to him, consistent fiscal frameworks, transparent debt management practices, independent monetary policy, and reliable regulatory enforcement can reduce risk premiums associated with sovereign and project-level investments. The infrastructure financing gap is estimated to be between 130 billion dollars and 170 billion dollars a year, representing a development constraint and an investment opportunity. Key areas such as transport corridors, power generation and transmission, water systems, digital networks, and logistics infrastructure can provide long-duration cash flows aligned with institutional investor mandates.

"The mobilisation challenge is less about the global supply of capital and more about the quality of the market architecture through which that capital is deployed," said Masinda.

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