05 Mar 2025

First National Bank Botswana’s chief financial officer, Dr Mbako Mbo says in line with the bank’s vision to support economic diversification and empower local businesses, the bank has approved P456.3 million in sustainable finance facilities.

Presenting the bank’s half year financial results, Dr Mbo noted that the facilities were designed to support businesses that are either environmentally friendly or socially positive, playing a critical role in enabling Botswana’s transition to a more sustainable future.

“FNB Botswana’s commitment to community impact and economic empowerment is mirrored in our solid financial performance. ‘For the half-year ending 31 December 2024, the bank demonstrated resilience in a challenging economic environment,” he said.

He said the bank was also running a financial literacy awareness drive, targeted to diverse demographics and delivered through multiple media platforms and direct interaction with stakeholders.

Despite challenges in sectors like mining and diamond sales, Dr Mbo said that FNB Botswana maintained a steady growth trajectory adding that customer confidence was evident with an eight percent increase in customer numbers, and 10 percent increase in loans and advances, as well as a 12 percent rise in deposits.

Additionally, he said the bank’s total assets grew by nine percent, driven by robust loan and deposit growth and a focus on digital innovation.

“Beyond financial performance, FNB Botswana remains committed to making a positive impact through initiatives such as sustainable financing, SME support programmes like the FirstPreneur Entrepreneurship Development Programme and Citizen Economic Empowerment Programme (CEEP) and financial inclusion efforts like CashPlus,” he said.

He said as part of the broader efforts to uplift local communities, FNB Botswana also invested P500 000 in staff volunteer projects. Dr Mbo explained that the projects reflected the core value of inclusivity, providing employees with opportunities to contribute meaningful causes to them, while reinforcing the commitment to creating positive social impact.

As digital banking adoption grows, FNB Botswana is also investing in self-service banking solutions and a driven financial tools to enhance convenience, security, and accessibility for its customers.

In terms of capital and liquidity management, Dr Mbo said FNBB maintained sound capital ratios to maintain confidence in the solvency and the quality of its capital during both calm and turbulent periods in the economy and in financial markets.

“The bank aims to maintain capital ratios in line with its risk appetite, thereby appropriately safeguarding its operations and stakeholder interests,” he said.

Dr Mbo pointed that FNBB’s capital management strategy was to ensure an optimal level and composition of capital, effective allocation of financial resources including capital and risk capacity, with a view to achieving a sound return on equity and a sustainable dividend distribution to shareholders.

He said the capital planning process was conducted on a forward-looking basis and considered the organic growth requirements and a safety margin for unexpected fluctuations in business plans and earnings volatility. As part of the transition to a low carbon economy, Dr Mbo said the bank also disbursed P59.1 million in transition finance, out of a total commitment of P74.4 million.

He disclosed that these transactions aimed to combat climate change by supporting green or socially positive businesses and enabling the local transition journey. ENDS