TIRI MASAWI
Nedbank Group says it will soon roll out a plan to localise its operations in Namibia, creating opportunities for local people and supporting the Bank of Namibia’s push for greater local participation in the banking sector.
“The plan to localise is only a matter of when not how. It is something that we are working on and will announce a plan soon,” said Nedbank Group Managing Executive Terrence Sibeya.
Nedbank operates in six Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, including Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Lesotho, and has a representative office in Angola.
Sibeya said Nedbank Namibia is well capitalised and ready to fund major infrastructure projects, including mass housing, which could be boosted by the expected oil and gas industry growth over the next five to ten years.
“We have adequate financing to deal with the expected need for finance in Namibia in those years of the oil and gas industry. We have also done pretty well in most of our operations in the African continent,” he said.
He added that financing local projects is a key part of their work in Namibia. “Although I might not be able to give the actual amount of much we have put into local businesses right now, we are very capable of financing these projects,” Sibeya said.
Nedbank Namibia Managing Director Martha Murorua echoed his comments, saying the bank continues to fund local projects and small businesses.
“We do invest a lot in the local economy and we have funded a number of projects although I am not able to say right now what exactly we have put in Small to Medium Scale Enterprises,” Murorua said.
The move to localise comes as finance minister Ericah Shafudah announced regulations limiting foreign influence in local banks.
“In February 2026, Government gazetted the Regulations Relating to Citizenship and Place of Residence of Board of Directors and Executive Officers of Banking Institutions, issued under the Banking Institutions Act, 2023,” Shafudah said.
She added “These regulations require that key leadership positions and at least seventy (70) percent of board and executive roles in banking institutions be held by Namibians. This ensures that critical decision-making roles remain aligned with national development priorities.”
Banks that fail to comply could face fines of N$100 000 or imprisonment, unless they can show a foreign executive has rare skills unavailable locally, Shafudah said.
Other government measures include the rollout of Namibia’s first fast and instant payment system to support Government-to-Person payments, and progress toward exiting the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey list.
Nedbank Group’s financial results show strong growth. Headline earnings rose 8% to N$16.9 billion, and the final dividend increased 8% to 1,104 cents per share.
Nedbank also noted higher impairment charges in Mozambique and Namibia, up 25% to N$315 million. Wholesale term-lending, retail deposits, and renewable energy financing — now almost R140 billion — all showed strong performance, according to Chief Executive Jason Quinn.
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