Zambia: Deposit interest rate (%)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2020, Zambia's deposit interest rate (%) rose 0.43 percentage points on 2019 (from 8.29% to 8.72%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2019), the average change was −0.11 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 13.09 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 39.63 percentage points in 1993 and the biggest yearly fall was 41.99 percentage points in 1994. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2011 to 2020 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 18% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to Zambia in the 2020 ranking

• Tanzania — 2nd of 3: 6.68%
• Myanmar — 3rd of 3: 5.83%

What this measures

Deposit interest rate is the rate paid by commercial or similar banks for demand, time, or savings deposits. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability. This indicator is expressed as a percentage (a÷b)*100.

Limitations: Countries use a variety of reporting formats, sample designs, interest compounding formulas, averaging methods, and data presentations for indices and other data series on interest rates. The IMF's Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual does not provide guidelines beyond the general recommendation that such data should reflect market prices and effective (rather than nominal) interest rates and should be representative of the financial assets and markets to be covered. For more information, please see http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/mfs/manual/index.htm.

All 43 values

Deposit interest rate (%) in nearby economies

• Angola — 7.98% (2025)
• Benin — 5.3% (2021)
• Botswana — 2.35% (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 5.3% (2021)
• Cabo Verde — 1.53% (2025)
• Cameroon — 2.45% (2018)
• Central African Republic — 2.45% (2016)
• Chad — 2.45% (2016)
• Comoros — 2.06% (2022)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 7.89% (2025)
• Congo, Rep. — 2.45% (2016)
• Côte d'Ivoire

More financial sector data for Zambia

• GDP deflator (base year varies by country) — 415.22 (2025)
• DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) — US$25.13 (2025)
• Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average) — US$25.28 (2025)
• Inflation, GDP deflator (annual % growth) — 5.63% (2025)
• Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP) — 13.68% (2025)
• Net domestic credit (current LCU) — 172.45 billion (2025)
• Net foreign assets (current LCU) — 85.43 billion (2025)
• Monetary sector credit to private sector (% of GDP) — 13.72% (2025)
• Broad money (current LCU) — 223.14 billion (2025)
• Broad money (% of GDP)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Zambia's deposit interest rate (%)?

8.72% in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1978?

It is up 2.47 percentage points from 6.25% in 1978. The highest value was 88.13% in 1993 and the lowest 6% in 1982.

Is the latest change in deposit interest rate (%) unusual for Zambia?

In 2020, Zambia's deposit interest rate (%) rose 0.43 percentage points on 2019 (from 8.29% to 8.72%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2019), the average change was −0.11 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 13.09 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator FR.INR.DPST, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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