18 May 2008
Maputo — A new Mozambican bank with capital from China's special Administrative Region of Macau, as well as from Portugal and Mozambique, will open later this year, according to the governor of the Bank of Mozambique, Ernesto Gove.
Gove told AIM that the new institution, to be known as Moza Banco, has already been licensed by the central bank. It will have initial capital of 10 million US dollars, which is four times more than the minimum figure of 2.5 million dollars required by Mozambican banking legislation.
In its initial phase, Gove said, Moza Banco would concentrate on investment banking. Nonetheless, its licence also allows it to operate as a "universal bank" which could accept deposits from, and make loans to individuals.
The major shareholder in the new bank is Geocapital, a company set up by the Macau billionnaire Stanley Ho as a vehicle for investment in the Portuguese speaking African countries. Ho made his fortune in the gaming industry, and held a monopoly on gambling in Macau for 35 years. Forbes magazine ranks him as the 104th richest individual in the world.
Geocapital holds 49 per cent of the shares in Moza Banco, with the remaining 51 per cent held by a variety of Mozambican and Portuguese companies and individuals.
Gove argued that an investment bank has an important role to play in the Mozambican economy, because of the shortage of resources available to finance productive activities. Businesses find themselves obliged to take out short term loans from the commercial banks, which hinders them from undertaking long term operations.
"Moza Banco will have long term resources", said Gove, "and will thus be better able to provide longer term financing. This is an area which is currently not covered"
A second new bank due to open this year is Banco Terra (Land Bank), the first Mozambican bank that will focus specifically on the rural areas where the majority of the population lives. The driving force behind Banco Terra is the Mozambican financial institution GAPI (Small Scale Investment Promotion Office), and its strategic partner is the Dutch Rabobank. Its initial capital is five million US dollars.
Gove said that there is a favourable macro-economic environment for this type of investment, thanks to recent legislative and institutional reforms. He added that last Thursday, the Bank of Mozambique was informed of interest shown by some Indian investors (whom he did not name) in opening a bank in Mozambique.
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