Bayport Financial Services Tanzania celebrates 10 years
Having started its first operations in Zambia in 2001, the
Bayport Group operations are currently in 7 African countries and 2 in Latin
America. These countries are Zambia, Uganda, Ghana, Tanzania, Botswana, South
Africa, Mozambique, Colombia, and Mexico.
Today Bayport Group has a loyal customer base of
approximately 518 000 customers who regularly and repeatedly access its
services.
According to Bayport Tanzania Chief Executive Officer John
Mbaga, Bayport disbursed over Tshs 48 billion during the 2015 financial year
alone. Bayport is considered one of the ‘large tax payers’ in Tanzania, paying
over Tsh 7 billion to the fiscus in 2014.
“Our desire is to improve the lives of our customers and
give them opportunities that will benefit not just them but their children and
future generations,” said Mbaga at a media event recently. “We support them by
focusing on short-term cash flow relief, which in turn helps families towards
increasing and lasting financial wellness.”
Bayport Tanzania was incorporated in 2006. It rapidly became
the leading unsecured credit provider to employees in both the public and
private sectors. Bayport’s footprint of 83 permanent and 45 mobile branches
reaches every region in mainland Tanzania.
The company has 300 permanent employees and a network of
more than 1 000 sales agents.
“The jobs we provide have contributed to the reduction of
youth unemployment in the country,” said Mbaga.
According to the Integrated Labour Force Survey (ILFS-2014),
the unemployment rate in Tanzania stood at 13.70%.
In addition to unsecured loans, Bayport’s portfolio includes
insurance products such as the Education Protection Policy that covers
dependents’ education fees for up to three years in the event of the policy
holder’s death.
Bayport’s Credit Life policy covers outstanding loan
balances should customers be retrenched, become disabled, pass away or contract
a dread disease such as cancer.
Bayport recently launched mortgage-type loans that allow
customers to own a surveyed plot of land. The product extends Bayport loans to
off-payroll borrowers by using the surveyed plot of land as collateral.
Commenting on Bayport’s corporate social responsibility
policy, Mbaga said that education is its priority. “Through our ‘Change a Life’
initiative we have been refurbishing classrooms in various schools, donating
desks, providing full scholarships for university students and donating books.
Since 2006, we have had a direct impact on 1 500 primary and secondary school students.”
Bayport also supports orphaned children. A flagship project
is the EOTF-sponsored orphanage whose kindergarten Bayport has upgraded to
modern standards. The company’s TSh 200- million investment has resulted in an
eco-friendly facility with natural lighting and natural ventilation that caters
for 40 children at the EOTF center and 60 more from the neighboring villages.
Reflecting on Bayport’s 10-year journey of business
accomplishments in the country, Mbaga said that the company is proud of the
growth and maturity it has achieved over the past decade. “We celebrate the
opportunity and the ability to impact the lives of our customers, stakeholders,
employees and the communities in which we operate."
He noted that the company’s strategic vision and
on-the-ground implementation had found favour with investors, among them
Swedish investment company AB Kinnevik. In July 2010 the latter invested US$40
million in the Bayport Group to become the single largest institutional
shareholder in the company.
Four months later, Bayport issued its maiden bond in the
international debt capital markets, raising a total of US$100 million.
“In 2016, Bayport Management Ltd closed a $250 million
senior debt facility with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC),
the US government’s development finance institution. The long-term loan will
support the group’s financial inclusion and growth agenda across its
operations. As a Bayport subsidiary, Bayport Tanzania contributes to the
group’s investment profile, and benefits from it,” said Mbaga.
Bayport’s business strategy, according to Mbaga, is based on
product diversification and technological innovation with people as the core
focus.
In step with the group strategy, Bayport Tanzania re-branded
its identity in 2015 with a people-centered message, giving the company the
opportunity to reposition itself as a financial solutions provider.
“Our new brand was not developed in isolation. It grew out
of our business philosophy – which is called The Bayport Way – and supports
it,” explained Mbaga. “The Bayport Way is all about how we treat people, be
they employees, customers or investors, and how we add value to their lives.“
As a group, Bayport believes that credit is a powerful
enabler when managed responsibly and rolled out effectively. “It never fails to
inspire us when we see how our customers put their credit to positive use and
drive economic activity that fundamentally improves their lives,” said Mbaga.
The CEO thanked Bayport Tanzania’s customers, funders, the
government and other stakeholders for the unwavering support that they have
given the company over the past 10 years.
“It has been an exciting journey filled with achievements.
Without all our stakeholders, we would not have achieved these great
milestones. I assure you that Bayport Tanzania is growing stronger every year.
As we march into the next decade, we are determined and committed to achieve
even higher standards of excellence in providing our unmatched products and
services in Tanzania.”
Maoni
Chapisha Maoni