LOLC enters Zambia to carry out finance business

Bank of Zambia Director Non-Bank Supervision Freda Tamba and LOLC Chief Executive Officer Africa Region Elmo Jayetileke ceremonially open first LOLC Finance Zambia Limited branch in Lusaka 

• Sets up deposit-taking non-banking financial institution
• Branch located in Lusaka; plans underway to set up more branches 
• Zambia becomes LOLC’s 9th overseas finance operation
• Says keen to replicate model successful in Asia, in Africa 

Sri Lanka’s LOLC Group has commenced its operations in Zambia recently, with the official launch of its inaugural branch located in Lusaka. 

The company, which will operate as LOLC Finance Zambia Limited, is a deposit-taking non-banking financial institution and will provide finance products such as home loans, motor vehicle finance, business loans and consumer loans, among other products, thus helping to narrow the access to financial services gap in Zambia. 

The branch on Lusaka Cairo Road was ceremonially declared open by Bank of Zambia Director Non-Bank Supervision Freda Tamba.

A press statement by LOLC Group said plans are also underway to open branches in the Copperbelt and North-Western provinces of Zambia in the near future. 

LOLC Zambia is LOLC’s ninth overseas finance operation and LOLC has already launched operations in Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines and Nigeria. 

With its financial strength and the perfected microfinance business model in the region, LOLC Group is well-positioned to expand its operations beyond Asia, serving a large bottom of the 
pyramid population. 

LOLC, keenly looking to establish its breakthrough impact finance lending model across Africa, replicating its success in Asia, made its debut to Africa in 2019, by acquiring a microfinance bank in Nigeria and by starting LOLC Finance Zambia as a green field project. 

Today, with promising strategic investments, LOLC looks to increase its presence throughout the African region in the years to come. 

“Zambia is a very important market to us, as it is one of the fastest growing economies in Africa. There is enormous opportunity and potential for micro-entrepreneurs to expand their businesses and for enhanced economic development,” LOLC Group Managing Director/CEO Kapila Jayawardena said.

“As the only Sri Lankan financial institution operating in this market, we hope to export our global expertise to Zambia, as done in all other nations we are present in, to benefit mainly the MSME segment to uplift their lives through responsible lending. We hope to use our technological innovations to effectively penetrate the Zambian market,” he added.