Omega Ukama 
AFRICAN Century Limited (ACL) can now conduct international banking business after it was granted a licence by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), an official has said.
The institution, which had traded as a focused leasing company since 2011, was licensed as a deposit taking microfinance institution in 2016, and this has enabled it to offer a wider range of products, while “broadening its funding base”. “Subsequent to year end, the company was licensed as an authorised dealer by the RBZ. This means that the company can now conduct international banking business including facilitation of imports and exports as well as making outward payments via telegraphic transfer,” Victor Gapare, ACL’s board chairman, said last week in the bank’s results for the year ended December 31, 2019.
The bank’s total assets closed the year at $135 million, down from $347 million as at December 31, 2018.
“This will enable the bank to leverage its strength in accessing external lines of credit to assist in the rebuilding of the economy,” he said. The chairman said as the outlook for the leasing industry in Zimbabwe continues to be challenging, driven by shortages of foreign exchange that is required for the importation of machinery and equipment, ACL will focus on its capacity to access credit lines specifically targeted at underwriting leases in the productive sectors of the economy, including agriculture and mining. “The bank will continue working on its digital presence so as to improve the efficiency and speed with which its customers can access its products.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has put much more emphasis on the need to completely digitise the company’s services,” Gapare said. Still, Gapare said the bank continues to lead the pack in leasing expertise and will continue to leverage on this in support of the productive sectors of the economy. The bank achieved total operating income amounting to ZWL49,89 million, up from ZWL45,92 million the previous year. After taking into account the loss on net monetary position, the company made a comprehensive loss of ZWL25,27 million while in historical cost terms it achieved comprehensive income amounting to ZWL50,01 million.
The bank’s total assets closed the year at $135 million, down from $347 million as at December 31, 2018. Gapare said the decline was due to a reduction in the loan book. Total deposits decreased from $95,99 million 2018 to $16,04 million amid rising ination and a depreciating local currency unit. The microlender, however, maintained a decent asset quality, with a non-performing loan ratio of less than one percent as at December 31, 2019. ACL’s capital adequacy ratio, on the other hand, stood at 3 241 percent, which was comfortably above the statutory minimum of 12 percent. The company remains confident that its plan to meet the recently announced minimum capital of the Zimbabwe dollar equivalent of US$5 million by December 31, 2020 is “achievable”.
