Consumers have been encouraged to report malpractices to NAMFISA for swift supervisory action against unscrupulous entities.
The Chief Executive Officer of NAMFISA, Mr. Phillip Shiimi, has stated that consumers of financial services and products should by no means hesitate to approach NAMFISA through its Complaints
Department.
The Complaints Department has the responsibility to receive, screen and investigate complaints by consumers and take these up with the specific regulatory activities.
The CEO said although statistics indicate improved performance and growth of the financial institutions, a lot still needs to be done in the areas of reducing incidences of malpractice. He said the continued growth of the financial industry is partly attributable to NAMFISA’s heightened regulatory and supervisory activities, as well as continued engagement with industries to find common ground on issues of mutual and paramount concern to the sector.
“Notwithstanding the increased supervisory interventions, we are aware of the malpractices committed by certain unscrupulous players in the market. To this end, the Authority has increased its focus on the principles of treating customers fairly. We encourage consumers not to be despondent, but to approach NAMFISA if they face challenges with financial institutions that do not want to adhere to legislative frameworks and generally accepted business conduct by treating customers fairly.”
Mr. Shiimi also emphasised the Authority’s zero tolerance approach towards non-compliance to the laws and the mistreatment of customers. “We will continue to publish the complaints statistics in more elaborate fashion in the subsequent Quarterly Statistical Bulletins. It is for no other reason than to increase awareness to users of financial service and products and to provide an opportunity for consumers to approach us with complaints related to financial institutions under our supervisions.
“The Authority will continue to promote the safety and soundness of the financial sector in order to harness the confidence in the system for the benefit of all Namibians,” he stated