Bank Windhoek Limited, commonly referred to as Bank Windhoek, is a commercial bank operating in the Namibian market. Bank Windhoek conducts business as a registered bank and provides comprehensive banking services to its clients in Namibia. While being an autonomous Namibian company, the bank also provides international banking services through direct liaison with financial centres and institutions worldwide. Bank Windhoek is one of the commercial banks licensed to operate in Namibia by the Bank of Namibia, the national banking regulator. Bank Windhoek has a strong track record of making banking more accessible in remote areas of Namibia. Of all commercial banks operating in the country, Bank Windhoek has the largest branch network and footprint across Namibia. As of July 2017, Bank Windhoek has 55 branches, agencies and specialist branches countrywide. The bank also has a corporate and institutional banking division with offices in Windhoek, Oshakati and Walvis Bay. Bank Windhoek offers foreign exchange services throughout its branches and through a joint venture with American Express, which has various outlets in Namibia. Bank Windhoek has 112 ATMs across Namibia and 220 Bank Windhoek Cash Express ATMs installed at merchants countrywide in partnership with ATM Solutions Namibia. Bank Windhoek was established in 1982, when a group of Namibian entrepreneurs took over eight local branches of Volkskas Bank. The aim was to create a financially independent bank for Namibians in Namibia. Over the years, Bank Windhoek has built a strong financial position and achieved remarkable growth.
Overview
As of December 2016, Bank Windhoek reported total assets of N$31. 9 billion. Bank Windhoek is the largest entity under the umbrella of Capricorn Investment Group Limited, branded as "Capricorn Group", a Namibian financial services group listed on the Namibian Stock Exchange, with interests in banking, insurance, asset management, investments and micro finance. Until May 2017, Capricorn Group was a subsidiary of Capricorn Investment Holdings Limited. The company has a unitary board, consisting of executive, non-executive and independent directors. Currently, eight members constitute the board of Bank Windhoek, including one executive director and four independent non-executive directors. Bank Windhoek is the flagship brand of Capricorn Group.
Ownership
Bank Windhoek is a 100% subsidiary of Capricorn Group. The two largest shareholders of Capricorn Group are Capricorn Investment Holdings, which holds a 41% shareholding in Capricorn Group and the Government InstitutionsPension Fund, which holds 25.9%. Bank Windhoek contributes more than 95% of the total income of Capricorn Group and represents more than 89% of the group's net asset value. BW Finance, a subsidiary of Bank Windhoek, is the vehicle through which the group does its micro lending business, which is a separate entity, as per regulation. Bank Windhoek is the only bank operating in the Namibian market with close to 100% Namibian ownership.
Group structure
The following entities are the shareholders of Capricorn Group:
