INTERFIN Bank, a unit of Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed Interfin Financial Services (IFS) has completed a retrenchment exercise amid plans by the bank to bounce back from curatorship, the company has announced.
Report by Bernard Mpofu
According to a notice published last Friday, the bank laid off 46 managers and 36 non-managerial staff, as the undercapitalised banking institution continued to chase after $80 million in outstanding bank loans to plug a hole.
“The retrenchment exercise, which was meant to rationalise costs, was successfully concluded resulting in the termination of employment for 46 managers and 36 non-managerial staff,” the bank said in a statement.
“Loan repayments by borrowers have remained very slow due to the number of cases in the courts and the tight liquidity conditions prevailing in the economy. As all the loans had been provided against, all collections will result in a reduction of the capital gap.”
Currently the bank is pursuing a proposed scheme of arrangement, which involves the conversion of deposits to equity in the bank’s quoted holding company.
If approved, the company said, the scheme will result in the reduction of the capital gap and a strong balance sheet, which is more attractive to potential investors.
Last June, the central bank placed Interfin under a six-month recuperative curatorship, following revelations of gross mismanagement which led to the institution’s demise. The bank’s parent company, IFS was suspended from the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange last year.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
The apex bank last week extended the curatorship to 2014 in a bid to conclude plans to shore up the undercapitalised institution as well as recover funds from debtors.
The bank recorded a negative core capital of $92,9 million as at June 2012 and as of December 31 2011 the bank had insider loans of $2,97 million.
Official figures also showed that as of May 2012, the bank had a total of $36,5 million in unsettled payments.
