Abidjan , Ivory Coast ( CNN ) -- Two leading Ivory Coast banks closed their doors this week , raising fears that a money shortage will worsen the crisis in the West African nation . Mounting security concerns prompted BICICI and Citibank to suspend operations Monday . Paris-based BNP Paribas , parent of BICICI , issued a statement saying it has done its best to serve clients despite the instability in Ivory Coast . `` Over these past few days , however , legal uncertainty has significantly increased , '' the statement said . The bank , it said , `` is therefore no longer able to ensure legal and accounting security for its clients . It has thus decided to temporarily halt the bank 's activities until further notice . '' Ivory Coast has been in crisis since a late November election that ended in dispute . The international community has pressed incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo to relinquish power to Alassane Ouattara , who foreign powers say won the election . The political standoff in the country has raised fears of a renewal of the bloodshed suffered after a civil war broke out in 2002 . More than 33,000 people have fled to neighboring Liberia since the crisis began ; another 20,000 have been internally displaced , U.N. agencies estimate .
Security concerns prompted the banks to close . Many fear a money shortage will worsen the crisis . Laurent Gbagbo refuses to cede power .