ABSA BANK INVESTS 1.62 BN TO JOIN TMRC SHAREHOLDING

Dar es Salaam, 5 February 2024: Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company Limited (TMRC) welcomes Absa Bank Tanzania Limited as its new Shareholder. Absa has joined TMRC shareholding as the 19th shareholder following an investment of TZS 1.62 billion capital in TMRC. The investment in TMRC was concluded in January 2024. 

Absa Bank joins other financial institutions’ TMRC shareholders including CRDB Bank Plc; NMB Bank Plc; National Bank of Commerce Ltd (NBC); TIB Development Ltd; Azania Bank Plc; Exim Bank (T) Ltd and DCB Commercial Bank Plc. Other financial institutions’ TMRC shareholders include BancAbc Ltd; Bank of Africa (T) Ltd (BOA); First Housing Finance Ltd; Peoples Bank of Zanzibar Ltd (PBZ); I&M Bank (T) Ltd; NCBA Bank Ltd , Mkombozi Commercial Bank Plc and Mwanga Hakika Bank(MHB). 

Other TMRC shareholders include, National Housing Corporation (NHC) and International Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) such as Shelter Afrique (an African Development Bank Group housing finance institution) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) which is part of the World Bank Group.

By Absa Bank joining TMRC, the bank will have access to funds for mortgage purposes from TMRC as part of its strategy to grow its business through the issuance of mortgage loans.

Speaking at the launch ceremony, Obedi Laiser, Absa Bank Tanzania’s Managing Director, said “In the pursuit of fulfilling our organizational purpose, we put our customers at the center of everything we do, as they are the ultimate beneficiaries. This arrangement gives us access to an enhanced limit on long-term funding (from TZS 5Bn to TZS 32Bn) which will all be directed towards mortgage lending to our customers to satisfy the current market appetite on housing loans and address the housing challenge faced by many Tanzanians today. 

This will ultimately make housing loans more accessible to our customers in the long run given that the long-term funding offered by TMRC will help reduce the liquidity/funding risk incurred in the provision of long-term loans for housing and as a result, we are going to reach even more mortgage customers than before.”

About Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company Limited

Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company Limited (TMRC) is a Mortgage Liquidity Facility operating in Tanzania. As a specialized financial Institution that provides long-term funding to financial institutions for the purposes of mortgage lending. TMRC is a private sector institution owned by Banks and Non-Bank Institutions with the sole purpose of supporting banks to do mortgage lending by refinancing banks’ mortgage portfolios. TMRC seeks to expand home ownership in Tanzania by providing long term financing to banks and financial institutions. For more information, visit www.tmrc.co.tz.

About Absa Tanzania Limited

Absa Bank Tanzania Limited a subsidiary of Absa Group Limited, an African financial services group that aims to be the pride of the continent. Absa Group Limited is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in South Africa and is one of Africa’s largest diversified financial services groups with a presence in 12 countries across the continent and around 42,000 employees.

Absa Bank Tanzania Limited is a commercial bank offering personal banking, business banking, and corporate and investment banking solutions in Tanzania. The bank has a footprint of 16 branches and 63 Cash Deposit ATMs that are strategically placed within the country’s key cities that include Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, Arusha, Moshi, Dodoma, Morogoro, Iringa, Mbeya and Zanzibar.

Absa’s purpose is “Empowering Africa's tomorrow, together...one story at a time”. For more information, visit www.absa.co.tz