Integrated Report 2020

Chairperson’s Message CIM FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD 14 INTEGRATED REPORT 2020 Dear Shareholder, I am honoured to present my first message to you as Chairperson of CIM Financial Services Ltd (‘Cim’) following my appointment in July 2020. Supporting our clients It is impossible to start this review without mentioning the COVID-19 crisis that has shaken the very foundations of the world as we used to know it. Cim, similar to other companies, has not been spared from the effects of this crisis. Our priority during the year under review has thus been to support our clients so that they can weather the storm. Accordingly, we implemented several schemes such as a grace period so that clients would not be penalised for any payments missed during the lockdown period, a rescheduling scheme which offered clients the possibility to re-arrange their credit facilities where they have been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, and more recently the Wakashio oil spill and we launched a revitalised version of the Cim SME Factoring Scheme. More than ever, businesses cannot be impervious to the needs of the communities that they operate in. In this time of crisis and in addition to our ongoing CSR initiatives such as the Housing project at Cité Coeur Immaculée de Marie and the Get Connected Drug Prevention programme, Cim has launched a ‘Job Support Programme’ for the benefit of its clients who have lost their jobs due to the pandemic. In partnership with local recruitment agencies, we assist such clients to build and upload their profiles on the job recruitment platforms and help them prepare for interviews. We sincerely hope that this initiative will be of aid to our clients in finding new jobs as quickly as possible. Financial performance Although the Group managed to keep its steer in these troubled times and achieve a PAT of MUR190.8 m, the Board is of the view that the full impact of COVID-19 on our business remains a challenge to quantify given the uncertainty surrounding the evolution of pandemic. We therefore felt it would be more prudent not to declare any dividends for the financial year 2019/2020. The Board will continue to monitor the situation very closely and will adapt its dividend pay out accordingly. On a more positive note, I am pleased to report that the second bond programme initiated by Cim in June 2020 was a success and the Company was able to raise MUR3.0 bn of funding. This bond programme is in line with the strategic decision made two years ago to relinquish the deposit-