Namibians hold N$11.7bn in investment platforms

Namibians are choosing to invest more money through Linked Investment Service Providers (Lisp) rather than saving their money in banks accounting for nearly half of the N$25.2 billion managed through these investments.

According to the latest quarterly report from the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (Namfisa), Lisp assets reached N$25.2 billion by the end of June 2026, up 4.1% from the previous quarter and 20.7% compared with June 2025.

Lisps are investment platforms that allow people to put their money into different investments, such as unit trusts, rather than leaving their savings in ordinary bank accounts.

Individuals, classified as “natural persons” in the report, held N$11.7 billion, or 46.5% of all Lisp assets.

“Natural persons remained the largest contributors to Lisp assets under management as at 30 June 2026, accounting for 46.5% of the total assets, equivalent to N$11.7 billion,” Namfisa says.

The figure means that almost one out of every two Namibia dollars invested through Lisps came from individual investors.

Long-term insurers were the second-largest contributors, with N$8.8 billion, representing 35.1% of total assets.

Non-governmental organisations, such as churches and trusts account for another 17.5%, while companies make up just 1%.

Namfisa says the growth in the sector was not only driven by people putting more money into investment products, but also by the returns generated from those investments.

“The growth in assets was primarily supported by investment returns from underlying portfolios, including dividend and interest income, alongside continued client inflows into the diversified investment products offered through Lisps,” the regulator says.

UNIT TRUSTS

Most of the money managed through Lisps is being channelled into unit trusts, which pool investors’ money and spread it across different assets.

Namfisa says unit trusts accounted for 92.2% of all Lisp assets at the end of June.

Listed shares accounted for another 4.6%, while the remaining 3.2% was invested in money market instruments, debt securities, unlisted property and unlisted shares.

The figures also show that most of the money remains invested in Namibia and the wider Southern African market.

About 48.8% of Lisp assets were invested in Namibian-domiciled investments, while 46.5% was invested in the broader Common Monetary Area, which includes South Africa.

Only 4.7% was invested in international offshore markets.

The figures suggest that while Namibians are increasingly using investment platforms to build wealth, much of that money continues to flow into investments linked to the domestic and South African markets.

THREE PROVIDERS DOMINATE

Despite the growth in Lisp investments, the market remains heavily concentrated among a small number of providers.

Namfisa says three providers together controlled more than 90% of the market.

“Sanlam Namibia continued to hold the largest share of the total Lisp assets at 73.6%, followed by Momentum Wealth Namibia at 11.7 percent and Capricorn Asset Management at 7.8%,” the regulator says.

The growing value of Lisp investments means household savings are playing an increasingly important role in Namibia’s financial markets, while also giving individuals more avenues to invest beyond traditional savings accounts.

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