Postbank acting managing director, Ms Anne Karanja (left) and Chase Bank assistant general manager for branches Ms Beth Thuo (centre) at a past event. Postbank is looking to recruit top managers as it targets to begin lending before the end of the year. FILEPHOTO
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She said at the time that talks between the National Treasury and the CBK were at their tail-end to pave way for regulatory approvals for credit services.
Postbank is looking to recruit top managers as it targets to begin lending before the end of the year.
Postbank yesterday said in a public notice it is seeking to hire “high calibre results-oriented and experienced professionals” for nine managerial positions. They include the post of chief operations officer, head of human resources and administration, head of projects, head of finance and accounts, head of strategic planning and marketing and head of banking services.
Other positions advertised are company secretary, who will also lead legal services and procurement, head of audit and head of ICT and alternate channels.
The company said the head of banking services will be charged with “growing Postbank’s business in retail, corporate and agency banking and also money transfer services.”
Postbank acting managing director Anne Karanja had earlier in March this year told the Business Daily the company is eyeing the last quarter of 2016 to start issuing loans. This means the time frame is less than six weeks away.
Ms Karanja said then the institution was preparing its human capital to back its lending operations planned for the last quarter 2016. “We anticipate to start giving loans before end year. We have significantly prepared to go into the credit market,” Mrs Karanja said.
Regulatory approvals
She said at the time that talks between the National Treasury and the CBK were at their tail-end to pave way for regulatory approvals for credit services. The government-owned institution has for long sought regulatory approvals to turn its operations into a commercial banking model.
Postbank currently operates a savings service with no lending or current account products. “We started due diligence in 2013. There is a lot of preparation behind the scenes and we are looking forward to the last quarter of this year ... when we shall be able to proceed firmly,” Ms Karanja said then in Nairobi of the plans to turn Postbank into a commercial banking business model.
She said the bank is looking to either operate a new commercial banking subsidiary or launch a deposit-taking microfinance institution.
A review of Postbank’s lending capabilities was done by a consultant and completed last December and what the bank is now doing is to implement the recommendations that came from the exercise.
Commercial banking has been an attractive business for the institution due to its long-standing links with depositors from whom the it collects cheap deposits. Postbank is likely to benefit from the ever-expanding low-end segment of the market.
But the company has also to contend with new laws and prudential requirements as well as the effect of technology on operations.
“We are already preparing our core banking system to align it with this new service. The bank is also crossing out a checklist of prudential guidelines and financial reporting standards that we will be required to adhere to,” Ms Karanja said in March.
It will be required to have at least Sh1 billion in capital and a core banking system. However, a microfinance model requires anything between Sh20 million and Sh60 million in capital to start.
Postbank posted a Sh1.4 billion loss in the financial year that ended in June 2015.
