More than half of the loans provided by the Banco Nacional de Investimento (BNI) fell into default at the end of the first quarter of 2024, but most Mozambican banks also maintained ratios above the 5% recommended by the central bank.
In the report on prudential and economic-financial indicators for the first quarter prepared by the Bank of Mozambique and to which Lusa had access this Monday, BNI, which is on the list of central bank institutions with less than a thousand clients, closed the following: the period with the non-performing loan ratio ( NPL) 52.4% (43.98% in the previous quarter) and NPL coverage ratio, which fell to 69.29%.
Among about 15 commercial banks on the central bank’s list, Ecobank follows with a non-performing loan ratio of 33.88% and Moza Banco with a ratio of 19.12%.
From the list published by the central bank based on data provided by the financial institutions themselves, United Bank of Africa (UBA), First National Bank (FNB), Standard Bank and First Capital Bank (FCB) have non-performing loan ratios lower than recommended (5%) respectively 0.84%, 2.62%, 2.66% and 3.98%.
Millennium BIM, one of the country’s largest and led by Portugal’s BCP, saw its non-performing ratio fall to 4.53% in the latest quarter.
Bank of Mozambique Governor Rogerio Lucas Zandamela previously said Mozambique’s banking sector was “robust and well capitalized” but warned that non-performing loans remained at high levels.
“The non-performing loan ratio remains relatively high,” he said, noting that it stood at 9.1% of the total in September last year, up from 9.3% in the same month the previous year.
“The national banking sector remains stable and well capitalized, with a solvency ratio of 24.0% in September this year. [2023]which corresponds to 12.0 percentage points above the regulatory minimum,” Zandamela emphasized at the end of 2023.
Central bank data shows that there are 15 commercial banks and 12 microbanks operating in Mozambique, as well as credit cooperatives, savings and loan institutions and others.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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