Maputo, July 2, 2025 (Lusa) - More than 80% of Mozambican banks’ share capital came from abroad at the end of 2025, mainly from South Africa and Portugal, according to information from the Bank of Mozambique that Lusa consulted on Wednesday.
In its 2024 annual report, released today, the central bank states that “foreign capital accounted for around 83%,” equivalent to 46.121 billion meticais (€611.5 million), with the remainder coming from Mozambique.
In 2023, the same report identified that 82.6% of the share capital of the same 15 banks operating in Mozambique was foreign.
The 2024 report states that “South African capital maintained its dominant position, with a share of around 29.5%, followed by Portuguese capital, with 25.3%”.
“Individually, Banco Comercial e de Investimentos [Portuguese group Caixa Geral de Depósitos] maintained its position with the largest share capital (18%), followed by Moza Banco, with 13%, and Absa Bank Moçambique, with around 10% of the banking system’s capital,” the document states.
The report also highlights the growth of microcredit operators in Mozambique, which increased from 2,304 to 2,818. The number of banks (15), credit cooperatives (4), and investment companies (1) remained unchanged, while the number of microbanks rose from 14 to 15 over the last year.
Profits of Mozambican banks declined by 21.9% in 2024, reaching the equivalent of about €900,000 per day, according to previous data from the Bank of Mozambique.
The central bank explains in a report on financial stability that the reduction in net banking income, which totalled 24 billion meticais (€319.4 million), This result stems, on the one hand, from “an increase in operating costs, particularly personnel expenses, by 7.88%,” and, on the other hand, from “a reduction in other operating results, reflecting a 44.6% increase in impairment losses.”
In 2023, the profits of Mozambican banks grew by 8.12% compared to the previous year, the document recalls. It adds that, in the 2024 results, 64.63%, equivalent to 16.82 billion meticais (€223.8 million), correspond to three domestic credit institutions classified as systemic.
These are Banco Comercial e de Investimentos (BCI), owned by Caixa Geral de Depósitos, the South African bank Standard Bank and Banco Internacional de Moçambique (BIM), part of the Portuguese group BCP.
The non-performing loan ratio (NPL ratio) of Mozambican banks “remains above the conventionally accepted limit (5%), standing at 9.32%, after 8.23% in 2023”, while the NPL coverage ratio stood at 60.29% in 2024, against 66.02% in 2023, according to the central bank.
‘The banking sector remains profitable and with adequate levels of capitalisation, liquidity and profitability, even as asset quality improves,’ the report said, adding that in 2024, the overall solvency ratio stood at 26.11%, “above the regulatory minimum of 12%”.
PVJ/ADB // ADB.
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