By ETimes
HARARE – CENTRAL Africa Building Society (CABS), the banking subsidiary of Old Mutual Zimbabwe Limited, recorded strong growth in lending and deposits in 2025, underpinned by improved transaction volumes and refinancing efforts.
“Banking and Lending registered growth in both the loan book and volume of transactions, resulting in non-funded income growing by 21%,” Old Mutual Zimbabwe Limited stated in its audited special purpose consolidated financial report for the year ended 31 December 2025.
The group said deposits rose sharply during the year.
“Deposits increased by 57%,” it said, adding that “the loan book grew by 33% while portfolio quality remained strong closing the year at a non-performing loan ratio of 0.99% (2024: 1.52%).”
CABS, which operates under the oversight of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, remains a key contributor to Old Mutual Zimbabwe’s banking and lending segment.
The group said refinancing initiatives helped improve profitability.
“The refinancing of more expensive lines of credit assisted in improving net interest margins by 200 basis points during the year,” the group said.
Growth was also supported by expansion in microfinance operations linked to the banking unit.
“The microfinance business loan book grew by 71%,” the group said.
“During the second half of the year, the microfinance business faced loan repayment delays from some key customers, taking the portfolio at risk outside appetite.”
However, the company said asset quality trends improved towards year-end.
“Collections, however, improved towards the end of the year, a trend that has continued into the early part of 2026,” it said.
Old Mutual Zimbabwe said digital and infrastructure investments were also aimed at strengthening its banking operations, including CABS.
“We deployed offsite deposit taking Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), providing coverage and access to customers in more locations,” the group said.
The company added that enhancements to payment systems were ongoing.
“We continued to enhance our Point of Sale (POS) infrastructure to deliver improved performance, supporting greater usage and seamless experience for our merchants and customers,” according to the group.
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