NMBZ Holdings says it has raised about US$16 million in fresh capital from foreign investors as the bank looks to get involved in the country’s agricultural and mining sectors.

The group said three strategic investors, the Tunisia-based AfricInvest Capital Partners, Datch Development Bank FMO and Norwegian development Financier, Norfund had helped recapitalise the bank in return for a 26.97 percent stake.

Chairman Tendayi Mundawarara said the development would enable group's banking unit to extend credit to mining and agriculture, two of the sectors firing the country’s economic recovery.

The strategic investment would also help the group meet new capitalisation requirements introduced by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) requiring banks to increase their capital to at least US$100 million by June 2014 in a phased manner.

NMB Bank had already met the deadline to increase capital to US$25 million by the end of December last year. But the banks are required to increase their capital to US$50 million by June this year and US$75 million by year end.

Dually listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange and in London, the bank said it had also been granted full fungibility for up to 40 percent of its stock by the central bank.

“The granting of full fungibility for NMBH shares allows those of our investors who may wish to trade in and out of NMB shares to do so on the same terms and price, whether they buy them in London or in Zimbabwe,” CEO James Mushore said.

On Tuesday shareholders also approved resolutions aimed at consolidating and increasing the bank’s share capital by an additional 103 million shares to facilitate the tie-up with the strategic partners.