Zimbabwe's banks rake in huge profits as cash crunch worsens
For more than a year, Zimbabwe has been battling an acute shortage of US dollars, with depositors the hardest hit
All of Zimbabwe's banks - except for one state-owned entity - have reported millions of dollars in profits in the last financial year, ironically at a time when the country's cash crisis has deepened. For more than a year, Zimbabwe has been battling an acute shortage of US dollars, with depositors the hardest hit. Most are unable to access their funds due to strict withdrawal limits of $50 (about R670) a day and the cancellation of the use of international bank cards outside Zimbabwe.Bankers attributed the companies' fine form in the last financial year to a cocktail of innovations they had adopted to survive in the harsh macroeconomic environment. This included the adoption of several cost-cutting measures and the switch to electronic payments, a relatively new phenomenon in Zimbabwe, where there remains a high affinity for cash. CABS chairman Leonard Tsumba said its noninterest income had increased due to "higher transaction volumes" in response to the banks' investment in digital...
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