No money to rescue SME Bank

THE Zimbabwean co-owners of the SME Bank said they do not have money to rescue the scandal-hit bank, industrialisiton minister Immanuel Ngatjizeko said yesterday.

The SME Bank is 65% owned by the Namibian government, 30% by Zimbabwe's Metbank and 5% by Worldeagle Investments, which is owned by controversial Zimbabwean businessman Enock Kamushinda. Ngatjizeko told The Namibian that the Zimbabwean minority partners were instructed by the Bank of Namibia (BoN) – which has temporarily taken charge of the bank – to respond by 13 June 2017 about how they were going to assist in rescuing the bank which is teetering on the brink of collapse. “They said they don't have money. We don't have money. Now it's up to the Bank of Namibia to decide what to do next since they are in charge,” he said.