Angola’s banks are likely to grow faster than any others in Africa over the next decade, and they are also among the continent’s most profitable. But they will have to start innovating as increased competition and new regulations look set to make their presence felt.

Angola’s government has presided over 10 years of peace and booming economic growth, and neither looks likely to be disturbed in the foreseeable future. Nonetheless, managing the expectations of Angolans over the next decade as the memory of civil war fades will become harder. 

The discovery of vast oil reserves off the shore of Angola has significantly improved the country's economic outlook, with the government licensing the exploration and structuring the taxation of production in such a way that profits from the oil will filter down to benefit the entire population.

Angola’s vast oil reserves have helped it rebuild its shattered infrastructure and become one of the world’s fastest growing countries. But the country needs to develop the rest of its economy quickly to reduce its vulnerability to a fall in oil prices and tackle its high levels of poverty.

African banks are increasingly looking outside of their domestic markets, and many of the continent's biggest lenders are now active in multiple countries, buoyed by greater access to vast unbanked populations and a more stable political environment.

It has been a long time coming, but bankers are hoping Angola will be finally be able to issue sovereign bonds and raise at least $500m on the Eurobond market, thanks to the country's recent strong economic performance. 

New measures have been put in place to ensure Angola's local economy benefits from moves allowing international oil companies to develop the country's newly licensed deep-water reserves.

Angola is increasingly attracting foreign investment, as companies start to look beyond the nation's onerous bureaucracy to its strong investment potential, political stability and increasing transparency.

A fall in oil prices brought Angola to its knees two years ago. A deal with the IMF has helped the economy to stabilise and signs of growth can be seen in Luanda, but to avoid a repeat of such economic hardship, more structural reforms are needed to make the country attractive for business.