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• Meet Microentrepreneurs
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Yes! I want to support microfinance and empower people to work their way out of poverty.

Executive Director: John Lwande
Active Borrowers: 16,747
Active Portfolio: $26,620,000
Average First Loan: n/a
Portfolio at Risk > 30 Days: 7.69%
Savers: 120,100
Savings Balance: $44,271,000
Statistics as of May 2010

Vision: The vision of Akiba Commercial Bank (ACB) is to be the Tanzanian bank of choice in the provision of financial services to micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises. To realize this vision, the bank’s mission is to provide appropriate microfinance services in the most efficient and sustainable manner possible while simultaneously embracing the social and environmental interests of all its stakeholders.

History: ACB was founded in 1993 by a group of five publicly minded Tanzanians. At that time, existing banks were not serving the needs of micro- and small-business owners and there was a clear need for a bank that recognized the importance of access to financial services for the low-income market. In 1997, ACB received its operating license and was formally launched. ACB is now a full-service, commercial bank in the Tanzanian capital city, Dar es Salaam, and in other secondary cities in Tanzania. The majority of ACB's shares are owned by individual Tanzanians. International partners include ACCION Investments, Triodos, FMO, SIDI and Incofin.

ACCION’s Role: ACCION’s relationship with ACB began in early 2002, with the initial launch of an institutional assessment exercise. Over the course of the next few years, ACCION provided short term technical assistance to ACB’s microfinance operations, largely in the areas of training, product design, and marketing. In 2008, Akiba awarded ACCION International a three-year management contract, to deploy ACCION microfinance experts to the helm of the bank's microfinance operations. ACCION resident advisors hold the CEO, Chief Commercial Officer, CFO and Head of IT management positions. ACCION supports the management of ACB through trainings and short-term consultancies in other key areas to build institutional capacity and expand the bank’s portfolio. These areas include technology, risk management, marketing and human resources management systems. The ultimate goal of the new partnership is to grow Akiba beyond its current footprint of six branches, presently centered in Dar es Salaam, Arusha and Moshi to reach thousands of Tanzanian microentrepreneurs.

Borrower Profile: ACB’s key target market is the low-income entrepreneurs and salaried workers of Tanzania. Akiba offers both individual and solidarity group loan products catering to a broad range of client income levels. The bank also provides other product offerings, including overdraft facilities, corporate loans and savings products.

What’s New: ACCION Investments has complimented the technical assistance with an investment of up to $2.5 million as part of a new capitalization program. The investment represents a 20% stake in the bank. Incofin, FMO, Stichting Hivos-Triodos Fonds and Stichting Triodos-Doen, and Tanzanian investors such as InterConsult Ltd., Parastatal Pensions Fund and almost 70 private Tanzanian individuals, have invested a total of $2.7 million in the capitalization.

In addition, Mr. Francis Musoke recently joined ACB’s team as a resident advisor, supporting the bank’s efforts to strengthen credit productivity, revise its methodology and train staff. In 2009, an ACCION HR expert, Solymar Torres, began assisting ACB’s human resources department with the development of a comprehensive performance management system. For the second half of 2009, the ACB team focused on consolidating its loan portfolio while continuing to grow its deposits. The implementation of a new core banking system will be a key activity in the next few months.

Read the press release.

Program Growth: