More than half of Angola’s population lacks a bank account and it is estimated that 60% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) circulates between people without ever going through the financial system, said in Luanda the chair of the Angolan Post Office.
Maria Luisa Andrade, who was speaking at the official opening of Angola’s newest commercial bank, Banco Postal, said: “this is a significant loss to Angolan society, to the extent that these resources, as they are outside the financial system, do not generate taxes, they do not drive credit development and limit the growth of the country.”
Andrade, quoted by state newspaper Jornal de Angola, said the opening of Banco Postal intends to respond to increased demand in the country for non-banking financial services and financial inclusion of the population. Banco Postal will initially act in three segments, Xikila Money, Business and Trade, and Corporate & Personal. Xikila Money is an innovative financial service and will enable citizens who have never had access to the financial system, to open their first bank account and to transactions in real time using a mobile phone at any time and at an affordable cost.
The trade and business segment is dedicated to small businesses and entrepreneurs who are in the informal economy and are served by banks and microfinance institutions. The third segment, Corporate & Personal, is designed for medium and large enterprises and individuals with high incomes.
Banco Postal is a commercial bank with an initial investment of US$ 30 million, owned by shareholders in the public and private sector, including the Angolan Post Office, the ENSA group and EGM Capital, with headquarters in the ESCOM building, in Luanda.