By LJDemissie
September 14, 2025
Ethiopia’s financial sector faces a pivotal moment, underscored by the quiet collapse of Selam Bank—co-founded by Zemedeneh Negatu—and the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) audit revelations about Sinque Bank S.C., amplified by Ethio Forum’s video, which surpassed 283,674 views in eight days (September 5–14, 2025, per ethioforum.org analytics). These events expose systemic vulnerabilities masked by governmental silence, challenging Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s claim of a corruption-free state. As a nation striving for economic integrity, I respectfully call for transparency and accountability from his administration.
The Silent Fall of Selam Bank
Selam Bank, launched in 2021 with planning beginning in 2020 (Addis Fortune, May 2021), aimed to transform Ethiopia’s housing sector. In a promotional interview with EBS TV Worldwide on June 5, 2021, Zemedeneh Negatu, Chairman of Fairfax Africa Fund, stated, “By financing 100,000 homes over five years—each priced at an average of two million birr—we will generate 200 billion birr [roughly $4.56 billion USD] in total housing wealth, approximately 5% of Ethiopia’s GDP.” With 2021 GDP at approximately 4.88 trillion birr (~$111.26 billion USD, imf.org), the projection was ambitious (note: ~4.1% due to exchange rate variance of ~43.8 birr/USD).
However, despite its high-profile launch and ambitious projections, Selam Bank collapsed without issuing a single mortgage, constructing any homes, or releasing a public audit. From its public share offering in May 2021 to its merger with Goh-Betoch Bank in June 2023, the bank remained in a pre-operational state for roughly two years—never delivering on its core housing mandate, and exiting without regulatory explanation.
Ethiopian Business Review (June 12, 2023) noted Selam Bank’s mortgage model was structurally flawed, with legal ambiguity around title deed ownership—where the same property served as collateral, developer asset, and buyer ownership—leading to disputes like the Thehay Real Estate case. Overextended credit beyond its capital base, absent tailored NBE regulations, exposed it to risk. Capital Newspaper (June 12, 2023) reported Selam Bank’s merger with Goh-Betoch Bank due to internal challenges, yet no government post-mortem has emerged.
Zemedeneh’s Promotional Continuity
Now promoting “up to 15% tax-free” T-Bills at CBE Capital Investment Bank—barely matching Ethiopia’s 14.2% inflation rate (NBE, August 2025)—Zemedeneh continues to market optimism. His past ventures, including a $4 billion refinery project announced without naming investors, a Memorandum of Agreement, or progress (The Gulf Time, 2017), reflect ambitious projections with limited delivery. Reamplified in 2023 via CGTN Africa, the refinery announcement drew global media attention and raised public hopes across Ethiopia—yet failed again, it failed to materialize. Investors bought into a dream fueled by charisma, not structure. Ethiopia needs regulatory safeguards and retrospective accountability.
Sinque Bank: A Case Study in Concealment
The NBE audit, dated September 30, 2024, and highlighted by Ethio Forum, reveals Sinque Bank’s misconduct. It illegally boosted capital by Birr 726.9 million, practiced “evergreening” by rolling over Birr 1,257.3 million in non-performing loans (NPLs) to mask a 10.6% NPL ratio (against a reported 6.6%, exceeding NBE’s 5% threshold), and failed to collect 46.6% of its subscribed capital. Loans to entities like Guji Highland Coffee Plantation PLC lacked adequate collateral (49.2% coverage). These findings, corroborated by NBE’s 2024 annual report, depict a governance failure requiring urgent action.
Strategic Fiction and Systemic Risk
Zemedeneh’s visions—Selam Bank’s 100,000 homes, a $4 billion refinery, and a $17 billion portfolio—mirror the expansive vision preceding the 2008 U.S. mortgage crisis. Both relied on overextended credit and legal ambiguity, with Selam’s title deed issues paralleling unrecorded U.S. deeds. His $17 billion portfolio claim spans just under nine years, beginning with his appointment as Global Chairman of Fairfax Africa Fund in February 2017, following EY’s decision to cease operations in Ethiopia and dissolve its member firm, as reported by The Reporter Ethiopia.
Unlike the U.S., which had regulatory scaffolding (e.g., Dodd-Frank Act), Ethiopia lacks robust frameworks, as noted in NBE’s 2019 Banking Business Directive (SBB/81/2019). When one man’s projections span about four years of Ethiopia’s export earnings, the risk isn’t vision—it’s volatility. Ethiopia needs legal frameworks and postmortems to prevent future collapses.
A One-Man Sovereign Fund?
Zemedeneh’s $17 billion portfolio claim, built in under nine years, positions him as a one-man sovereign fund—yet without public audits, investor disclosures, or operational scale to match. In a country where annual exports average $5–9 billion, such claims demand not admiration, but verification.
The Scale of Claims vs. National Reality
Zemedeneh’s business narrative highlights ambitious projections totaling $24.5 billion: $17 billion from Fairfax Africa Fund (deal value, Fairfax Africa Fund, accessed September 2025); a $4 billion refinery first announced in 2017 (The Reporter Ethiopia), shelved on January 30, 2018 (Institutional Real Estate, Inc), yet reannounced in June 2023 with the claim, “The refinery is just the first component… we are going to have an entire petrochemical [complex] over the next fifteen years” (CGTN Africa); and Selam Bank’s $4.56 billion mortgage scheme (Addis Fortune, 2021).
These figures, based on public projections, underscore his vision. Against this, Ethiopia’s export revenue provides context: historically $3.5–5.5 billion, with a record $5.3 billion in the first nine months of 2024/25 and projected to exceed $9.3 billion by year-end (All Africa, July 2025) (higher than some estimates of $6.1 billion), driven by coffee ($3 billion), gold ($3.58 billion), oilseeds, pulses, khat, and textiles. Zemedeneh’s claims span nearly four years of export earnings, suggesting ambition outpaces verified delivery. Ethiopia needs audits to bridge this gap.
Operational Absence: Where Are the Employees?
If Zemedeneh’s ventures were operational—Fairfax Africa Fund ($17B deals), the refinery ($4B), and Selam Bank ($3.5B)—they would require thousands of employees across sectors. Yet, public records show no significant workforce for the deals, refinery or Selam Bank (est. 100–200 staff), and Fairfax’s footprint remains unquantified. This absence of operational evidence intensifies the need for transparent audits.
A Pattern of Systemic Issues
Selam and Sinque share a troubling pattern: overstated promotion, opaque management, and institutional silence. Zemedeneh’s current role at CBE Capital, where he holds a 30% stake via Dallol Investment Group (Birr Metrics, March 2025), reflects a continuity of influence dating back to the Meles Zenawi’s era. The Abiy administration’s silence on Selam and delayed response to Sinque’s Birr 3.3 billion in non-performing loans (NPLs) exposure contradicts its anti-corruption rhetoric.
Accountability is Overdue
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government must break this silence. The absence of a Selam Bank report, the muted response to Sinque’s audit, and the unverified scale of Zemedeneh’s ventures erode public trust. Ethio Forum’s 283,674 views are a referendum on silence.
I urge the National Bank of Ethiopia to enforce its directives without delay and call on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to release comprehensive reports on both Selam and Sinque Banks. Accountability isn’t optional—it’s overdue. These disclosures must include a documented account of Zemedeneh’s self-reported claims, including his alleged role in African aviation (The Empower Africa, August 2024) and EY global leadership—claims (Dawit Dreams, November 2022) unverified by EY’s own records (ey.com, accessed September 2025).
A Path to Renewed Integrity
Ethiopia’s banking system must serve its people, not elite interests or hidden agendas. This moment, fueled by 283,674 voices, is a mandate for change. By delivering transparency and accountability, Abiy’s government can prove its incorruptibility through action, restoring faith and joining a global movement for integrity. Let’s turn silence into strength.
LJDemissie can be reached at LJDemissie@yahoo.com or @LJDemissie on X.