adminThe People’s Own Savings Bank (POSB) plans to venture into mortgage lending in a bid to offer affordable housing, chief executive Admore Kandlela has said.
In an interview, Mr Kandlela said the bank has already applied for a mortgage licence from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
“We have applied for a mortgage licence from the central bank as we want to provide affordable housing to Zimbabweans.
“We have most of the mass market in our books, so it only makes sense that we venture into mortgage lending. However, our rates and terms will be much lower than what is obtaining in the market,” he said.
Mr Kandlela said the bank also plans to increase its capitalisation levels from the current $17 million to $25 million.
“Although we are not required by the Reserve Bank to comply with capital requirements, it is our intention to raise our capital level to $25 million from the current $17 million.
“If we continue operating profitably, this should be possible in the near term as we are only $8 million shy of the target. It will also be much easier to achieve our target if the RBZ grants us the mortgage licence,” he said.
Mr Kandlela said the bank had recently engaged Pick n Pay and TM stores as agents for its banking products and services. He said the bank will soon be opening 62 outlets through this arrangement
“We have 34 branches nationwide; our services are also available in 216 ZIMPOST outlets. We are an innovative bank that is keen on keeping pace with trends.
“We recently partnered with Pick n Pay and TM stores which will enable us to open 62 outlets through this partnership,” he said.
Mr Kandlela said POSB’s NPLs are currently at 15 percent adding that most of the bank’s income is derived from value added services such as mobile banking and internet banking.
Last week the bank presented a dividend cheque to the Finance Minister. The bank paid a $313 000 dividend to Government at a yield of 25 percent in accordance with the POSB dividend policy.
The bank realised a profit of $1,252 million in 2014. The turnaround comes after the bank registered a loss of $209,000 in 2013.
Speaking at the event, Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa said he was pleasantly surprised by the bank’s good performance and urged the State- owned enterprise to continue promoting financial inclusion. – Wires.
Online Reporter