Tanzanian multimillionaires Aunali and Sajjad Rajabali have gained Tsh3.68 billion ($1.6 million) from their joint stake in Tanzania’s largest bank CRDB Bank since the start of the year.
This was due to a double-digit increase in the bank’s shares on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange.
CRDB Bank Plc is the largest commercial bank in Tanzania, with a significant operational footprint in Burundi through its robust portfolio and tailored products.
The bank ranks higher than NMB Bank Plc and National Bank of Commerce Plc in terms of assets, making it a leading lender in the country with total assets of Tsh8.06 trillion ($3.5 billion) under management and liabilities of Tsh7.03 trillion ($3.05 billion).
The Rajabali brothers hold a beneficial 2.6-percent stake in the Dar es Salaam-based lender. Their joint interest, which amounts to a total of 66,921,350 ordinary shares in the bank, make them one of the top shareholders.
At the closing of trading on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange yesterday, Oct. 15, shares in CRDB Bank were worth Tsh250 ($0.1084) per share, up 4.17 percent from a price of Tsh240 ($0.1041) per share the day before.
Since the start of the year, the bank’s shares have advanced from a valuation of Tsh197 ($0.0854) per share on Jan. 4 to a valuation of Tsh250 ($0.1084) per share at the time of writing. This translates to a year-to-date gain of 22 percent for shareholders.
As a result, the market value of the joint stake held by the Rajabali brothers has increased from Tsh13.05 billion ($5.66 million) at the start of the year to Tsh16.73 billion ($7.25 million) at the time of writing.
This translates to a gain of Tsh3.68 billion ($1.6 million) for the businessmen since the start of 2021.
The Rajabalis also received Tsh1.47 billion ($635,024) in dividends from their stake in the Tanzanian bank.
The year-to-date price appreciation in CRDB Bank shares follows investor reactions to the lender’s strong financial performance in 2020, as the bank was able to grow its profit from Tsh120 billion ($51.8 million) in 2019 to Tsh165.2 billion ($71.3 million) in 2020, despite difficulties in its operating environment.
In the first half of 2021, CRDB Bank was able to sustain the growth in its earnings power, as profit in the half-year period improved from Tsh70.4 billion ($30.5 million) in 2020 to Tsh88.6 billion ($38.4 million).
Analyst believe the bank is on course to deliver another resilient performance by the end of its 2021 financial year despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
