Staff Reporter
Windhoek-Letshego Holdings Namibia posted its maiden annual results following its successful listing on the Namibian Stock Exchange on September 28, 2017. Letshego Namibia has recorded double digit growth in both revenues and profits and exceeded all financial projections that were included in the IPO prospectus.
The holding company’s core business, the ‘deduction at source’ borrowing solutions, performed well last year. Letshego Namibia realised a satisfactory 14 percent loan book growth in this segment, up N$305 million from N$2.1 billion in 2016, to N$2.4 billion in 2017.
Chief Executive Officer for Letshego Namibia, Ester Kali, said, “Letshego Namibia is very much in the investment and growth phase of its journey, and as such, we are proud to report a promising and positive first set of Annual Results for 2017. This last financial year was significant in helping us build a lasting legacy through our inclusive IPO, and subsequent successful listing on the Namibian Stock Exchange.”
Kali added, “Ekwafu Letu – the name given to our IPO meaning “our support” – was an ideal platform for us to demonstrate Letshego’s commitment to financial inclusion. Our approach to the IPO reflected a number of Letshego’s core philosophies, such as extending our reach to Namibians located far and wide, empowering individuals with increased awareness around the merits of managing their hard-earned money effectively, and enhancing customer experience with a simple, affordable and appropriate offer.”
Kali continued that Letshego Namibia is committed to diversifying its financial solutions to increase customer choice and experience, reduce concentration risk and increase income and growth potential through multiple channels. In 2017 Letshego Namibia launched the ‘LetsGo’ value proposition to a targeted base of customers, and will continue this roll-out parallel to the implementation of its access channels. “Namibia’s continued investment in skills development and systems has strengthened the organisation’s operational platforms and choice in access channels for customers. We endeavour to deliver an exceptional level of customer experience by identifying opportunities to grow our market share and enhance of our existing solutions through ‘LetsGo’ – our all-in-1 financial solution,” Kali added.
Kali concluded the 2017 results announcement with, “Our ongoing efforts to provide more inclusive offerings to the formal, informal and MSE segments of Namibia are already delivering positive growth and dividends for the business, despite us still being in the early stages of growth on the MSE segment. 2018 is expected to be another milestone in Letshego Namibia’s journey as we celebrate 10 years of improving lives. Our commitment to our customers remains unwavering and we look forward to celebrating another decade of dedicated and sustainable growth.”