BSB doubles assets in five years
Oageng Batenegi | Thursday July 14, 2016 18:00
Mabeo was answering a question from Member of Parliament (MP) for Gaborone Central, Phenyo Butale.
Butale had asked Mabeo to brief Parliament on the performance of BSB over the last five years. The MP wanted to know the initiatives undertaken to improve the performance of the banking institution. He added that Mabeo should tell the house why the bank has not introduced services such as Auto Teller Machines (ATM) since they have a full banking licence.
Mabeo said BSB has more than doubled its asset book as from 2011 to 2015. He said BSB’s assets have increased from P606 million to P1.57 billion over the period. The revenue for the bank increased by up to 64% that is from P52 million to P85 million said Mabeo. During the period, the profits increased from P4 million to P20 million, added Mabeo.
The minister said BSB and BotswanaPost’s merger has also presented some initiatives to turn around the business at the bank.
“BSB has developed an Overarching Strategy that defines a transformation phase taking into consideration new value proposition for customers,” said Mabeo.
The initiatives include realigning human resource planning to the current model of operation at the bank, said Mabeo. This was part of a restructuring project that took place in 2014, Mabeo informed Parliament.
He continued that the bank also introduced three new products to their business. These include the Debit Card, Express loan and Lecha loan, said the minister. The bank is enhancing its technological systems, Mabeo added.
The minister also informed the house that the bank would be implementing a multi-channel network that embraces other self-service options like Point of Sale (POS), ATMs and co-branded branches with selected post offices around the country.
Mabeo emphasised that the aim is to turn around business and drive the financial inclusion agenda of the banking institution. The intention is to provide customer-centric services at affordable costs to disadvantaged and low-income segments of the society, said Mabeo.
The minister added that BSB has recently successfully rolled out ATMs on its network of branches for faster and easier access to financial services. The said project will officially be launched at the end of this month, Mabeo told Parliament.