Hakrinbank N.V.

What it is

Hakrinbank was founded in 1936, in an era when Suriname was still part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the only bank in the country was entirely foreign-owned — it was established precisely to give Suriname its own national commercial bank, opening its doors on 28 June of that year on Keizerstraat in Paramaribo.

Today it is one of the leading financial institutions in Suriname, with an estimated market share of roughly 25%, and its shares are listed on the Surinamese stock exchange. It employs more than 370 people and runs seven locations — four branches in the capital Paramaribo and one each in the districts of Commewijne and Nickerie.

The bank offers a full range of services: personal and business banking, loans, insurance, currency exchange, and investment products, including retail products such as savings accounts and credit cards as well as corporate accounts, business loans, and treasury services.

Who owns it

As of mid-2025, the State of Suriname held 34.5% of the issued share capital — a stake it was legally required to cut below 20% by 4 July 2025, under the new Banking Supervision Act of 2023. To comply, the State offered 145,000 shares for public subscription, because the law bars any single shareholder from holding more than 20% of a bank’s capital.

The state’s holding traces back to 1973, when it acquired the stake in what was then the Vervuurtsbank N.V.; state-owned oil company Staatsolie also held a 6.25% interest. At the June 2025 shareholder meeting, the Kersten Groep — one of Suriname’s largest conglomerates — was welcomed as a new qualified shareholder.

The remainder of the capital is widely held by the Surinamese public; revenue from the state sale is dispersed to private buyers including foreign investors.

Who runs it

Rafiek Sheorajpanday serves as CEO (algemeen directeur), and told shareholders at the June 2025 annual meeting that 2023 placed heavy emphasis on strengthening leadership and competencies through HR policy, as well as on corporate governance, risk management, and compliance.

Coenraad Valk is the bank’s CFO (financieel directeur) and presented both the 2023 results and the financial outlook for 2024–2025 at the meeting. Sharmila Jadnanansing serves as board chair (president-commissaris), and described the sale of the state’s shares as an important step in strengthening governance and compliance within the bank.

Claire Wijdh, who began her career in the Netherlands, was introduced at the same meeting as the new deputy director for commercial affairs.

The money, in plain words

Hakrinbank presented its 2023 audited figures at its annual shareholder meeting on 26 June 2025 — notably late, a consequence of backlogs caused by the pandemic and a transition to international accounting standards — reporting a net profit of SRD 57 million (~$57 million). That is a drop from the SRD 64 million (~$64 million) earned in 2022.

Its capital adequacy ratio — the buffer of owners’ money a bank holds as a cushion against losses — rose to 20.68%, well above the floor set by the Central Bank of Suriname.

Shareholders unanimously approved the 2023 accounts and agreed to a dividend of SRD 20 (~$20) per share. At the market price of SRD 1,800 per share on the Suriname Stock Exchange, that dividend equals a yield of about 1.1% — modest, though the share price itself has risen sharply from the SRD 420 issue price of 2019.

Full-year revenue and return on equity figures were not disclosed in available sources outside the full annual report, which was not publicly accessible at the time of writing.

What it is doing now

The most immediate event is the public share sale launched 23 June 2025, offering the state’s 145,000 shares at a minimum price of SRD 1,200 (~$1,200) each — open to Surinamese citizens, companies, and foreign investors, with a subscription window closing 30 June 2025.

CFO Coenraad Valk told investors that the bank expects a pickup in lending particularly in the second half of 2024, driven by rising investment and improved margins. On the technology side, Hakrinbank has been integrating its mobile payments platform Mopé — launched in 2019 — with a range of applications, embedding payments directly into commercial activity rather than running them as separate processes.

What to watch

• Post-privatisation ownership map: banking law caps any single holder at 20%, so the state’s 34.5% stake must drop; how that capital disperses — and whether any new blockholder emerges — will reshape the governance of Suriname’s oldest bank.
• Reporting lag: The bank itself acknowledged it was catching up on a backlog in preparing accounts caused by Covid and the transition to international financial reporting standards. Until reporting is current, investors are reading yesterday’s news.
• Suriname’s macro backdrop: The country is navigating a recovery from a sovereign debt restructuring and hyperinflation; the bank’s profit swung from record losses in 2020–2021 to positive results, but the depth of the recovery in lending will determine whether earnings growth resumes.
• Kersten Groep: The arrival of this conglomerate as a new qualified shareholder is worth watching; in a small market, a large domestic commercial group holding a meaningful stake can align — or complicate — the bank’s lending priorities.

This is news, not investment advice.