• Total approved advances stood at K9.1 billion.
• Actual disbursements stand at K6.9 billion.
• PwC Survey is useful to financial service providers, prospective investors and BoZ.
Bank of Zambia (BoZ) has observed continued improvement in performance of the K10 billion Targeted Medium-Term Refinancing Facility introduced in April last year.
Speaking during the launch of the 2020 Banking and Non-banking Industry Survey report by PwC Zambia, Bank Governor Christopher Mvunga disclosed that as at 30th July 2021, BoZ received and processed 52 applications from 13 banks and 19 non-bank financial institutions worth K10.6 billion.
Mr. Mvunga however states that out of the 52 applications, 38 were successful, while 14 did not meet the set criteria.
“The total approved advances stood at K9.1 billion with actual disbursements at K6.9 billion. It is now slightly over one year since the implementation of the TMTRF, and the Bank is in the process of making further enhancements to the TMTRF, targeting accessibility of the facility by the smaller businesses which have continued to face a number of challenges,” Mr. Mvunga said.
He said the aim of the K10 billion TMTRF was to strengthen and enhance financial sector resilience particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and its potentially devastating impact on the domestic economy.
“The expectation of the Bank under this facility was to provide liquidity to FSPs for onward lending to viable non-financial corporates and households. After publishing the initial Terms and Conditions of the TMTRF on 14th April 2020 and the launch of the Facility on 15th April 2020, the BoZ continued to engage stakeholders to discuss any challenges encountered in accessing the Facility. In this regard, the Bank has on several occasions amended the Terms and Conditions, aimed at addressing the identified challenges and improving the performance of the Facility.”
And Mr. Mvunga thanked PwC for the publication of the Report, which provides an independent view of the state of the Zambian banking and non-banking financial sectors.
This survey is useful to financial service providers, prospective investors and ourselves as regulators of the financial sector and will undoubtedly add to informing our decisions in the areas of monetary policy and financial system stability.”
“We are fully aware that PwC has been conducting the Banking Industry survey since 2016 and in 2018 broadened the scope to include Non-Bank Financial Institutions in recognition of the complementary nature of services offered by commercial banks and Non-Bank Financial Institutions. The 2020 Report is the fifth edition and I commend PwC for this effort as well as the respondents to the survey for their continued participation,” he added.