African Bank bank branch in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Photographer: Waldo Swiegers / Bloomberg
Photographer: Waldo Swiegers / Bloomberg
African Bank Holdings Ltd. that they lost a full year a day after announcing the retirement of Basani Maluleke, the same Black Women who led one of South Africa’s leading banks.
The unsecured lender moved to a loss of 560 million rand ($ 37 million) in the 12 months through September, compared to a prior year profit of 267 million rand, Johannesburg-based African Bank said the a reported Tuesday. The country ‘s coronavirus pandemic and moribund economy caused credit defaults to rise 58%, resulting in a credit loss ratio of 11.7% from 7.5% previously, he said.
“Unfortunately, our financial figures did not withstand the worsening economic climate and a resurgence of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic,” Maluleke said in the statement. In the second half of the year there were “signs of less risk and better employment.”
The only Female Bank Director in South Africa is abruptly retiring
The chief executive is leaving at the end of April after three years in the prime post to pursue other career opportunities, African Bank said Monday. Maluleke took over after South Africa’s central bank and six of the country’s largest lenders stepped in to save the company with an injection of equity when African Bank Investments Ltd went bankrupt. into administration in 2014.
The South African central bank has hired financial advisers to help lenders leave their property, the African Bank said.
“The bank has begun working with these advisers and the Reserve Bank of South Africa expects the exit to be completed within 18 to 24 months, once they have identified a suitable buyer, ”Said the lender.
The bank has 1.35 million customers and largely caters to low-income households. Under Maluleke, the African Bank has been encouraging investments, providing access to a cheaper source of funding and trading taxes, while at the same time increasing cross-selling products, such as insurance, to diversify away from providing only small loans.
Chief Financial Officer Gustav Raubenheimer, who was also heavily involved in the African Bank rescue process, will take over as acting CEO. White men have been dominated by the leadership standards of the South African financial sector. The only other woman besides Maluleke who has run a bank is CEO Maria Ramos, who was at the helm of Absa Group Ltd. for the decade to February 2019.