Tanzania’s leading bank, CRDB Bank PLC, has today announced a TZS 118.2 billion (equivalent of USD 52.93 million) pre-tax profit for the Financial Year (FY) ended December 2016.
“We have witnessed a huge fluctuation of the shilling, which seems to have suffered under increased regulations. This adversely affected the general business environment and led to a substantial decrease in customer deposits and uptake of credit facilities,” said Dr. Kimei.
“On the other hand, we have enjoyed stable earnings from our forex-related income, witnessed growth in net interest income, fees and commissions,. We also been implementing a strong cost-management program to cut on unnecessary spending,” Dr. Kimei explained.
The bank is the largest in Tanzania by assets and customer deposits and has been on the forefront of driving innovation in financial services and inclusion, in a country where penetration is below 10%.
The bank’s interest income grew by 14% to TZS 568.2 billion from TZS 497.4 billion, while the net interest income rose to TZS 432.1billion in FY 2016 compared to TZS 390.6 billion recorded in 2015 which is an increase of 11%”.
Earnings on fees and commissions income grew by 3.8% to TZS 154.5 billion in 2016 from TZS 148.9 billion in 2015. “ Considering the challenging business environment, we see this as a steady performance, especially with regard to the activities of last quarter the financial year in review,” he remarked.
The CEO acknowledges that the bank’s value proposition to its clientele has contributed sgnifcantly to its capability to wade the somewhat stiff competition in East Africa’s second-largest economy.
“ We have continued to develop unique financial products, upgraded our ICT infrastructure and improved our customer service to enhance the customer experience in our banking ecosystem across the country. This has greatly changed how we interact with our customers, even in the unfavourable of consitions,” he said.
The bank is currently investing in digital banking channels of with focus on mobile banking (SimBanking) and Internet Banking. There are also plans to enhance the retail business compirisng personal banking, retail banking and SME business.
Summary of Financial Performance for the year 2016
• Net Interest Income growth of 11% to reach TZS 432.1 billion compared to TZS 390.6 billion recorded during the year 2015.
• Total assets grew to TZS 5,415.7 billion from TZS 5,407.8 billion
• Slight decrease in Total deposit from TZS 4,246.2 billion to TZS4,109.9 billion
• The Group made a profit pre- tax of TZS 118.2 billion compared to TZS 187.7 billion recorded during the year 2015. The Group profit was impacted by strong provisions from NPL to align with changing regulatory requirements and anticipated implementation of IFRS in 2018.
• Employment grew by 21% to reach a total of 3,196 staff
• 76 new branches and outlets were opened to reach a total of 250 branches from 199 branches in the previous year.
Other Key Highlights
• The year 2016 marked the Bank’s 20th Anniversary.
• Core banking system upgrade was successfully implemented in May 2016.
• Establishment of Insurance Brokerage Company Ltd.
• Implemented SME credit rating model.
• Development of M-Wallet (mobile money Wallet) to extend banking services through mobile phones to the unbanked population.
• Extended card usage campaign for Tembocard Visa/MasterCard/CPU to promote cashless economic transactions.
• Bank invested heavily in expansion of its network – 76 new branches/service centers and other outlets were opened and 58 additional ATMs installed and 850 new FahariHuduma agents (to reach 2,558 agents).
• Automation of loan origination workflow to improve quality of credit appraisal process
• The Bank completed rating by Moody’s and for the first time an entity in Tanzania is rated B1
• Upgrade of Centralized back office workflow system
1. CRDB Bank received 8 awards in different categories.
2. Africa Business Leadership Excellency Awards – African Leadership Awards, New York 2016. (Courtesy: African Leadership Magazine).
3. Best Retail Bank Tanzania – Banker Africa – East Africa Awards 2016.
4. The Best East African Bank of the year – African Banker Awards (AfDB Awards 2016).
5. Best Commercial Bank Tanzania – International Banker Awards 2016.
6. Best Innovation in Retail Banking Tanzania – International Banker Awards 2016.
7. Best Local Trade Finance in Tanzania – Global Trade Review (GTR)
8. Certificate of Appreciation on financial contribution – Women’s Economic Empowerment Forum (WEEF) – The United Republic of Tanzania, Vice President’s Office.
9. CEO – CRDB Bank PLC
10. Top Individual Award ‘East African Banker Lifetime Achievement’ – Banker Africa – East Africa Awards 2016.
11. GM – CRDB Burundi S.A.
12. Best Enterprise in Banking in Burundi – Manager of the Year – European- Business Assembly UK 2016.
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