Africa-Press – Namibia. Business Reporter FIRSTRAND Namibia Limited has announced its financial results for the year ending 30 June 2021, reflecting an extremely difficult operating environment with normalised earnings decreasing.
Oscar Capelao, FirstRand Namibia Chief Financial Officer, noted that post the March 2020 lockdown, underlying customer income and affordability in all segments deteriorated sharply, as evidenced by lower levels of underlying transactional and credit turnover and the increase in non-performing loans.
First Rand Namibia is a subsidiary of FirstRand Limited, also referred to as FirstRand Group, which is the holding company of FirstRand Bank, and is a financial services provider in South Africa. FNB trades as a division of FirstRand Bank Limited.
Giving an overview of the First Rands financials, Capello stated that total deposits were N$36 billion, down from N$38 billion in the previous year, while total advances stayed steady at N$30 billion.
The ordinary dividend declared for end of 2021 is 118 cents per share, combined with the interim dividend of 94 cents, totalling 212 cents per share – compared to the total dividend of 154 cents in 2020.
In terms of digital innovations, FirstRand Namibia remains the market leader – showing strong growth in headline earnings at N$1 023 million, compared to N$867 million in 2020.
Conrad Dempsey, CEO of FirstRand Namibia stated the group’s steady performance over the period is partly attributed to the pandemic impact driving necessary innovative and holistic relief programmes aimed at helping customers, including the Cashflow Relief programme, support to SME’s and larger businesses to continue to cover costs and salaries, as well as numerous waivers of fees and restructurings of loans.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated our plans to design, implement and improve the nature of our financial and non-financial support to our customers and vulnerable communities. We continue to respond purposefully and empathetically to calls for help by assisting customers through a range relief measures to help keep their heads above the water in the midst of a pandemic,” noted Dempsey at the results broadcast on Friday, 10 September.
