Maputo, Mozambique, 20 July – Barclays Bank Moçambique (BBM) has received an injection of capital of 1.2 billion meticals (around US$34.5 million) to fund development of the institution in the country, the bank said in a statement published in Maputo.

Of that amount, 864 million meticals will be used to acquire a new computer system, with the remaining 336 million meticals used to increase the bank’s capital.

In the statement, Paul Nice, the chief executive of BBM, said that “this investment is a strong demonstration of the collective focus of shareholders on the Mozambican economy and the growth of Barclays in the country.”

BBM is one of the biggest private banks in Mozambique and is 80-percent owned by South African groups ABSA.

Barclays, which has around 1,000 staff, has 58 branches across Mozambique, 92 automatic teller machines (ATMs) and 676 point of sale payment machines. (macauhu