Exim Bank Tanzania Chief Finance Officer, Mr. Selemani Ponda (Centre) briefs journalists at a news conference to announce the bank’s financial results for the first quarter of 2014 in Dar es Salaam yesterday. Looking on is Head of Treasury, Mr. George Shumbusho (first left) and Seniour Finance Manager, Mr Issa Hamisi (first right).
EXIM Bank Group 1st quarter (Q1) 2014 pretax profit rose by 42% to TZS 6.4 billion from the same period last year as per recently published results.
“We are pleased to report good results to start the year,” said Selemani Ponda, Exim Bank Chief Finance Officer. “Strong top-line revenue growth reflects the success of the Bank’s highly diversified income streams. We continue to improve upon operational efficiency to optimize our customers’ satisfaction. “Our Bank is continuing to move in the right direction. We are making progress towards fulfilling our ambitions. Our Q1 results show that we have had an encouraging start to the year,” he added.
Net interest income, grew by 27% from the same period in 2013 to TZS 12.5 billion. Fees and commission income increased by 37.4% from the same period in 2013, to TZS 8 billion, driven by volume growth on foreign exchange trading activities and trade finance products following the implementation of 3-year strategy plan.
“Total operating expenses were contained and went up by just 11.6% to TZS 13 billion. This was caused by start up costs of new branches as well as staff benefits in an effort to widen geographical coverage and strengthen the bank’s foundation. As a result, the cost to income ratio significantly reduced from 75% maintained a in the same period last year to 64%,” he added.
Customer deposits remained at TZS 747 billion compared to the same period last year. A well diversified loan portfolio recorded growth of 22% from the same period last year to TZS 538 billion, likewise, the bank’s balance sheet grew by 10% to TZS 1.1 trillion.
“Our top priority is our commitment to strengthening our market position and improving customer satisfaction through operational efficiency. The encouraging trend in customer satisfaction is a sign that we can succeed in reaching out ambitious targets for this year” said Chief Finance Officer.
In the process of streamlining our processes for better service delivery to our customers, some operations such as account opening and activation have been centralized. The deployment of “centralized operations” aims at moving all back office processes and practices out of the brick and mortal channels to promote efficiency, increase customer satisfaction and turn branches into “showrooms”, said Mr. Ponda.
In an effort to meet the ever changing customer needs, the bank has designated Kariakoo branch to serve customers who need banking services beyond the normal banking hours. Banking services at Kariakoo branch can be accessed from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Further more, email and SMS instant messages always alert our customers to all transactions that take place in their bank accounts with Exim.
The bank also continued with efforts to expand its outreach. New branches have recently been opened in the Anjouni islands at Domoni. A state of the art “corporate centre” in Arusha, the 3rd foot print in the city and 26th in the country was officially launched during the quarter. In addition, the bank plans to open a branch in Tabora, Tanzania, which will make a total of 32 branches across the group.
Based on the good performance in Q1 and the vast opportunities in the economy, the bank envisages better performance in the coming quarters as sales campaigns will be intensified and operational efficiency strengthened.
EXIM Bank (Tanzania) Limited was established in 1997 and expanded by opening subsidiaries in Comoro (2007) and Djibouti (2010), hence become the first local bank to open up branches outside Tanzania. Its core objective is to create investment value to its shareholders and optimize growth through delivery of customized services. Along with this, the bank is set to deliver excellence by serving customers with efficiency and courtesy.
Within a short span of 16 years of its existence, the bank has built a strong brand through its geographical reach, innovative products, relationship management and its ability to provide a faster turnaround in services and in the process building a strong loyal customers base.
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