THE LOAN facility deal between the Zimbabwe Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners’ Council (ZASMC) and Allied Bank to fund operations of small-scale miners in the country has faltered as the troubled financial institution continues to sing the blues.
GAMMA MUDARIKIRI OWN CORRESPONDENT
The bank had early last year agreed to extend an undisclosed loan facility for small-scale miners to purchase equipment from Matabeleland Engineering (Pvt) Ltd.
A memorandum of understanding was signed between the three parties in July last year, but according to officials the deal appears to have faliled.
“The investor (Allied Bank) is now giving us a cold shoulder and we have waited for long, but nothing has come out in terms of the funds that had been promised,” ZASMC president Wellington Takavarasha said.
“Matabeleland Engineering is now manufacturing equipment for individual small-scale miners who can afford to purchase the equipment,” he added.
Allied Bank was not available for comment. It is one of the most troubled financial institutions in the country apparently.
According to a recent Reserve Bank Zimbabwe (RBZ) report, Allied Bank is counted among the seven troubled banks in the country including Interfin, Capital, Trust, Kingdom , Tetrad Investment Bank and Metbank.
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The report said Allied Bank’s core capital declined from $12,6 million as at August 31 2013 to $11,8 million as at September 30 2013 due to persistent losses and an outstanding payment of $7,4 million as at September 30 2013.
According to the report, the bank has submitted a request for liquidity support to the RBZ by way of releasing statutory reserves, assistance in retrieval from the office of Foreign Assets Control-heldfunds ($1,1 million) and lender-of-last-resort facility of $2 million.
The banks which were initially the Zimbabwe Allied Banking Group was branded Allied Bank last year after Transport and Infrastructure Development minister Obert Mpofu injected $23 million through his investment vehicle Trebo&Kays.
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