The Bank of Namibia (BoN) announced a dividend payout of N$511.3 million to the State Revenue Fund and a significant increase in foreign exchange reserves, which soared by 11.9% to reach N$53.229 billion in 2023.
In its 2023 annual report, the apex bank said Namibia’s foreign exchange reserves remained resilient during 2023 amidst increasing pressure from rising imports.
The majority of the reserves are held in South African Rand accounting for 54.9%, followed by the US Dollar at 33.3%. The remaining portion is diversified among special drawing rights (SDRs) and other international currencies.
Adequate reserve levels were maintained, surpassing threshold metrics, thereby supporting the peg of the Namibia Dollar to the South African Rand.
The report further states that the bank’s net interest income witnessed an increase of 79% from N$554.55 million in 2022 to N$990.52 million in 2023, attributed to higher interest rates and increased average investment balances.
Operating expenses rose by 13%, a N$70.01-million difference from N$522.50 million recorded in 2022 to N$592.51 million in 2023.
However, the amount available for distribution surged by N$184.25 million marking a 24% rise from N$772.64 million in 2022 to N$956.89 million in 2023.
Meanwhile, the bank’s assets recorded a growth of 18%, escalating from N$52.36 billion in 2022 to N$61.92 billion in 2023. The bank also reported an increase in currency circulation to N$5.2 billion, reflecting a 7.6% rise from 2022 to 2023.
Notably, N$10 billion worth of banknotes were issued to commercial banks, with total commercial bank deposits amounting to N$9.1 billion.
Efforts to ensure the sufficiency and integrity of currency supply were underscored by a significant decrease in counterfeit banknotes detected down 59% from 2022. Additionally, N$2.4 billion worth of banknotes were withdrawn due to quality control measures.
The implementation of the Trade Verification System in October 2023 aimed at reconciling goods and funds resulted in the forfeiture of N$31.7 million in illicit funds to the National State Revenue.
The National Interbank Settlement System recorded a settlement value of N$1.2 trillion, with total fraud standing at a mere 0.0033%, falling well below the Bank’s fraud safety index indicator of 0.05%.
