Tanzanian Rajabali brothers gain $2.1 million as CRDB Bank shares skyrocket by double digits

Mfonobong Nsehe -

Tanzanian multimillionaire brothers Aunali and Sajjad Rajabali’s joint stake in CRDB Bank has increased in value by Tsh5 billion ($2.1 million) since the start of the year.

CRDB Bank is the largest commercial bank in Tanzania in terms of assets, ahead of NMB Bank Plc; the lender has a significant operational footprint in Burundi due to its robust asset portfolio.

The Rajabali brothers own a 2.6-percent stake in the Dar es Salaam-based lender. Their combined ownership of 66,921,350 ordinary shares in the bank places them among the top shareholders.

The recent increase in the market value of their stake was fueled by a double-digit increase in the leading banking group’s shares on the Nairobi Stock Exchange as investors increased their stake in the lender in response to its strong financial performance in 2021.

According to its financial report, it increased its profit by 63.7 percent from Tsh236 billion ($102.1 million) in 2020 to Tsh387 billion ($167.3 million) in 2021.

Earnings increased by a double-digit percentage due to a combination of cost-cutting strategies implemented by the group, as well as an 11.2-percent and a 24.8-percent increase in non-interest income and net interest income, respectively.

As of press time on Feb. 8, shares in the tier-1 lender were trading at Tsh355 ($0.154), unchanged from their closing price yesterday, Feb. 7, as bearish and bullish pressures were cleared out evenly.

The bank’s shares have increased by 26.8 percent since the beginning of the year, from a price of Tsh280 ($0.121) per share on Dec. 31 to a price of Tsh355 ($0.154) at the time of writing this report.

The market value of Aunali and Sajjad Rajabali’s joint stake in CRDB Bank has risen from Tsh18.7 billion ($8.1 million) at the start of the year to Tsh23.7 billion ($10.2 million) as a result of the bank’s share-price surge.

This amounts to a total gain of Tsh5 billion ($2.1 million) for the multimillionaire brothers since the year began.