HARARE - The National Social Security Authority (Nssa) met Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) authorities on Monday to discuss Capital Bank Corporation Limited (CBC)’s recapitalisation initiatives, businessdaily has established.

James Matiza, Nssa’s general manager, confirmed the meeting, but refused to divulge more detail.

“We were at the Reserve Bank and we discussed Capital Bank,” Matiza told businessdaily.

“We agreed on a position that we will present to our board’s investments committee on May 22,” he said, adding that more information and Nssa’s decision on CBC would be disclosed thereafter.

The pension fund — currently forging plans for banks it has interests in to comply with the central bank’s minimum capital requirements — holds an 84 percent stake in CBC.

This comes as last month CBC said it had raised $6 million to be channelled towards complying with the RBZ’s minimum capital requirements.

Lawrence Tamayi, CBC’s managing director, said the group planned to raise more funds through further rights issues.

“It (the money) was raised through a rights issue. We held an extraordinary general meeting on February 7 with the shareholders and agreed to raise an initial $6 million, which has been raised as we speak,” he said.

Tamayi said the money was raised in proportion of the shareholders’ weight.

“Nssa as the major shareholder is going to be the underwriter in case some of the shareholders fail to meet their obligations,” he added.

Following the capital raising exercise, the Bank’s minimum capital is around $13, 5 million.

According to RBZ governor Gideon Gono’s 2013 Monetary Policy Statement, the institution’s capital stood at $7,5 million as at December 31, 2012.

Last year, Gono ordered banks to recapitalise to a minimum $100 million in a phased manner.

In the first phase, whose deadline expired on December 31, 2012, commercial and merchant banks were supposed to increase their minimum capital to $25 million, then up it to $50 million by June 30 this year and $75 million by December 31.

The institutions should reach $100 million by June 30, 2014.

Gono said CBC’s compliance proposal needed further improvement.

CBC’s fundraising efforts come as Nssa has said it will not bail out banks it has interest in.

“The position taken by the board’s investments committee is that they will be no capital injection to stand-alone units. It is up to the banks to think about it (the merger) for themselves,” Matiza has said.
He said Nssa will not impose a merger of the institutions either.

Nssa’s shareholdings in banks include 26 percent in FBC Holdings Limited (the owner of FBC Bank), 40 percent in FBC Building Society, 37,9 percent in ZB Financial Holdings (the parent company of ZB Bank Limited and ZB Building Society) and 84 percent in Capital Bank.

It also holds an 11,6 percent stake in CBZ Holdings, the proprietors of CBZ Bank Limited. - Kudzai Chawafambira