MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC) Sells $3.8m in Bonds to Boost Access to Home Ownership

The Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC), an institution that refinances the portfolios of housing lenders, recently completed an issue of corporate bonds on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. The bond listing had a target of TZS 7 billion (USD 3 million) and reached a total volume of TZS 8.9 billion (USD 3.8 million). This is the third funding round under TMRC’s Medium-term Note program, which has raised a total of TZS 120 billion (USD 54 million) as part of the company’s shift from public to private financing sources.

Among the buyers of the bonds was the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. IFC bought bonds worth TZS 2.8 billion (USD 1.2 million) in this round. IFC has been a shareholder of TMRC since 2019, and it holds 9.2 percent of TMRC shares. TMRC’s other shareholders include Tanzania-based Azania Bank, Tanzania-based Cooperative and Rural Development Bank and Kenya-based Shelter Afrique. TMRC was founded in 2010 and as of December 2018 its balance sheet stood at TZS 136 billion (USD 58.8 million) with total loans of TZS 103 billion (USD 44.4 million). During 2018, the institution issued dividends totaling TZS 357 million (USD 154,000).

Founded in 1956, IFC offers loans, equity investments, advisory services and technical assistance to private companies with the intent of alleviating poverty and promoting open and competitive markets in developing countries. During the 12 months ending June 2020, IFC reported total disbursements of USD 26 billion, closing the period with total assets of USD 96 billion.

The World Bank Group is a multilateral organization whose goal is “to end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity in a sustainable way.” As of 2021, it has 189 member nations. The group encompasses: (1) the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association, which make up the World Bank; (2) IFC; (3) the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency; and (4) the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. During the 12 months ending June 2020, the World Bank Group disbursed a total of USD 54 billion.

By Teo Lin-Bianco, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

IFC press release
https://pressroom.ifc.org/all/pages/PressDetail.aspx?ID=26508

TMRC homepage
https://www.tmrc.co.tz/

TMRC annual report
https://www.tmrc.co.tz/resources/view/tmrc-annual-report-and-financial-statement-for-the-year-ended-31-december-2018

IFC annual report
https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/corp_ext_content/ifc_external_corporate_site/annual+report/download

IFC homepage
https://www.ifc.org/

World Bank Group homepage
https://www.worldbank.org/

Previous MicroCapital article on IFC
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-ifc-invests-24m-in-evolving-europe-principal-investments-fund-eepif-to-boost-sme-finance/

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