The Impact of Effective Credit Risk Management on Bank Survival

A number of financial institutions have collapsed or experienced financial problems due to inefficient credit risk management systems. The study seeks to evaluate the extent to which failure to effectively manage credit risk led to Zimbabwe’s banks’ demise in 2003/2004 bank crisis. It also seeks to establish other factors that led to the banking crisis and to outline the components of an effective credit risk management system. The study found that the failure to effectively manage credit risk contributed to a greater extent to the banking crisis. The research also identified poor corporate governance, inadequate risk management systems, ill planned expansion drives, chronic liquidity challenges, foreign currency shortages and diversion from core business to speculative non-banking activities as other factors that caused the crisis. There is also need for banks to develop and implement credit scoring and assessment methodologies, review and update the insider lending policies and adopt prudential corporate governance practices.