The non-bank financial system comprises 68 institutions, three of which started operations this year. Funds hold the largest market share, with 49.6% of total assets. Accountability remains the “Achilles’ heel” of these institutions.
The aggregate assets of Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFIs) reached Kz 191.2 billion in the first quarter of this year, a 60.9% increase compared to Kz 118.8 billion in the same period last year, according to data presented by the National Bank of Angola (BNA) during a conference within the central bank’s annual conference cycle.
Analdete Garcia, Director of the BNA’s Non-Banking Supervision Department, highlighted during her presentation the sector’s upward trend but stated that there is still a deficit of NBFIs operating in the country, associated with the concentration of existing institutions in Luanda.
Currently, the country has 24 exchange houses, 21 credit companies, 18 payment service providers (PSPs), three credit cooperatives, and two funds employing around 1,333 people, of whom 57% are male and 43% female. Thus, the non-bank financial system now has 68 institutions, three of which started operating this year. By the end of 2024, only 65 institutions were licensed, including those with suspended licenses that still met the conditions to begin operations.
Although they are numerically a minority, funds hold the largest market share in the sector with 49.6% of assets, followed by PSPs with 29.8% as of Q1 2025. It is also worth noting the significant growth in PSPs’ business volume, which accounted for only 8.75% of total NBFI assets in Q1 2024.
Legitimacy of Funds and Accountability Are Key Challenges
According to Analdete Garcia, the main challenges faced by institutions within the non-bank financial system are directly linked to accountability and compliance with accounting standards. “We have also identified constraints with the accounting entries recorded in trial balances,” emphasized Garcia, speaking on “Procedures for Operating in the Non-Bank Financial Sector” as part of the BNA’s annual conference cycle.
She also pointed out other challenges, including the need to review regulations on operational rules and prudential limits; the implementation of a risk-based supervisory framework; improvements in information reporting; deployment of the regulatory platform (New Information Reporting Portal to the BNA); implementation of the strategy to expand financial services and products of NBFIs; completion of sectoral risk assessment for AML/CFT in NBFIs; and completion of the FSAP assessment exercise for NBFIs.
On the other hand, the main challenges faced by those seeking to enter the non-bank financial system are related to the legitimacy of fund sources as well as financial strength and capacity, in the case of institutions under the Central Bank’s supervision.
For institutions supervised by the Capital Market Commission (CMC) and the Angolan Insurance Regulation and Supervision Agency (ARSEG), weaknesses relate to the submission of documentary requirements, highlighting the need for greater information dissemination by the regulators.
Source: Expansão
