|
|
 Amana Bank has issued loans worth Sh22 billion in a period of one year since its inception a year ago. This was revealed by the bank’s managing director, Dr Idris Rashid, during the first anniversary held at its Kariakoo Branch. He said that the loans given ranged from house and business operations; whereas others were given under the Sharia banking system which attracts a very little interest rate. “If you apply for loan to build a house, we will build it and hand it over to you. “We want to avoid issuing tokens to applicants. We’re generally happy with the conduct of our customers when it comes to servicing their loans, we’ve had positive development so far,” said Dr Rashid. He said that so far they have obtained over 3,600 customers for their three Dar es Salaam-based branches. He said that they were planning to have at least 15 branches countrywide. According to Dr Rashid, branches that are about to be opened include one to be located along Lumumba Street in the city and two others in Arusha and Mwanza regions, respectively. “We thank our customers and shareholders who have supported us to achieve this growth. “We’re proud of our services. The past 12 months have proved really great for our bank,” he said. He listed the challenges they face as including difficulties in securing reliable and strategically located points for establishing new branches, high renting cost, as well as the need to offer more education on Sharia banking system. The other banks in the country that offer Sharia banking system include Stanbic Bank, NMB Bank, NBC Bank and CRDB Bank. |
The Citizen Tanzania