LEADING financial services institution Stanbic Bank has expanded its network of remote branches for the tobacco marketing season, adding 13 new facilities countrywide to bring the total number of branches to 27.
The seasonal remote branches, also known as implants, were first introduced in 2021 at major tobacco auction floors and key client locations as the Standard Bank Group subsidiary sought to improve banking convenience for farmers and merchants across the country.
The tobacco selling season began in earnest in March, prompting Stanbic Bank to roll out additional implants in Marondera, Macheke, Rusape, Banket, Chinhoyi, Bindura, Mhangura, Mutoko, Chivhu, Mt Darwin, Mvurwi, Karoi and Guruve.
The facilities are located at major tobacco sales floors and merchants, including Zimbabwe Leaf Tobacco, Mashonaland Tobacco Company, Boost Africa, Curverid Tobacco and Northern Tobacco.
Stanbic Bank head of personal and business banking Nelson Muhau said the branches were designed to improve access to banking services while reducing congestion at major auction floors.
He said the facilities would also save time and transport costs for farmers operating in remote areas.
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Before the introduction of the remote branches, farmers from areas such as Chivhu, Mt Darwin, Mutoko and Rusape had to travel to Harare to conduct banking transactions.
“These remote branches also reinforce Stanbic Bank’s quest to meet the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s (RBZ) financial inclusion initiative as we seek to play our part in fostering inclusive economic growth and social development,” Muhau said
He said the bank remained committed to supporting the RBZ’s financial inclusion agenda by ensuring that tobacco farmers and merchants in remote areas had access to affordable and relevant financial products and services.
These include transactions, payments, savings, credit and insurance services delivered in a sustainable and responsible manner.
“We are committed to put our shoulder to the wheel by embracing the RBZ’s developmental approach to drive financial inclusion by ensuring that tobacco farmers have these financial services at their doorsteps instead of having them crowd the major auction floors,” Muhau said.
He added that Stanbic Bank recognised the important role played by smallholder farmers, who remain one of the priority groups identified under the central bank’s financial inclusion framework.
The RBZ’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy seeks to address barriers limiting access to financial services and prioritises groups considered underserved, including low-income households, micro, small and medium enterprises, women, youths, people with disabilities and rural communities.
Stanbic Bank remains one of the largest financiers in Zimbabwe’s tobacco sector, providing more than US$405 million in offshore facilities and US$20 million in onshore financing to major tobacco merchants and primary producers linked to their value chains.
Tobacco remains one of Zimbabwe’s most important export crops and contributes more than 10% to gross domestic product.
Last year, the sector produced a record 353 million kilogrammes of tobacco, representing a 52,9% increase from 2024 and generating more than US$1,17 billion in revenue.
The industry continues to play a critical role in the economy, with more than 85% of the country’s over 135 000 growers classified as small-scale farmers.
Zimbabwe sold 333 million kilogrammes of tobacco through contract farming arrangements, while 19,8 million kilogrammes were sold through auction floors. China remains the largest importer of Zimbabwean tobacco.