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FNBB signals SMME stress as lending slows

FNB Headquarters. PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO
FNB Headquarters. PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO

The country’s largest commercial bank by loan book and assets, First National Bank Botswana (FNBB), has reported a slowdown in uptake of its purchase order financing product for small and medium enterprises, pointing to mounting strain in a sector heavily reliant on government contracts.

In its latest report, the bank disclosed that there was a growing strain within Botswana’s small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, with only P84 million drawn from an approved P200 million purchase order (PO) financing facility at year-end, underscoring weakening activity for local enterprises amidst growing economic headwinds.

The bank attributed the low uptake to a slow economic activity marked by decreased government spending that had spillover effects to other microelements of the economy, such as businesses and households.

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