Capricorn Group, a high-performing financial services company founded by Namibian tycoon Jacobus “Koos” Brandt, spent nearly $1 million on corporate social responsibility initiatives at the end of the group’s 2022 fiscal year.
According to recently published financial results, Capricorn Group and its subsidiaries, Bank Windhoek and Capricorn Asset Management, spent a total of NAD15.4 million ($857,000) on CSR initiatives at the end of its 2022 fiscal year.
This represents 1.3 percent of the group’s profit after tax for the period under review, and a 26.9-percent increase over the NAD12.14 million ($676,000) spent on CSR initiatives in the previous year.
“Corporate social responsibility means doing the right thing for the right reasons,” said Marlize Horn, executive officer of the Capricorn Foundation, a non-profit organization that serves as the Capricorn Group’s vehicle for CSR initiatives.
Horn added that establishing the Capricorn Foundation as a registered non-profit organization in February 2020 will significantly improve the strategic focus and impact of the group’s CSR investments.
She added that the group’s CSR vision is aligned with its purpose of becoming an inspiring connector of positive change by creating economic value in a responsible way that creates sustainable opportunities in the communities where it operates.
Capricorn Group is a financial services conglomerate with operations in Namibia, Botswana, and Zambia that provides banking, microfinance, property development, unit trusts, and asset management.
The group reported strong financial performance at the end of its 2022 fiscal year, with profits exceeding NAD1.1 billion ($64 million) despite challenges in its operating environment.
Capricorn Group’s largest individual shareholder, Brandt stepped down as chairman of the group and its subsidiary Bank Windhoek in 2017. He owns a total 18.52-percent stake in the Namibian financial services conglomerate, which is presently valued at NAD1.07 billion ($59.5 million).
