The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the African Petroleum Producers' Organisation (APPO) have formally established the Africa Energy Bank at its inaugural general meeting in Abuja on 31 October 2026. The new institution, headquartered in Nigeria's capital, appointed Egyptian banker Helmy Ghazi as its inaugural president and constituted its first board of directors.

The bank has US$5 billion in authorised capital, a framework figure rather than money already paid in or lent. Its mandate spans the energy value chain, from exploration and production through transportation, processing, refining and distribution. The promoters put Africa's energy investment needs at an estimated US$200 billion, at a time when traditional international financiers have pulled back from oil and gas projects.

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The joint announcement gave no paid-in total and no date for the first loans, so the test of the bank will be how quickly it converts authorised capital into funded projects. Early reporting suggests financing could begin in early 2027, with oil and gas projects first and cross-border investments a priority. For African governments, the bank is presented as a way to secure their own energy future; for critics, the question will be whether a pan-African lender can fill a gap that global banks have left, without repeating the governance problems that have dogged energy finance before.