Parliament seeks answers on Malawi Savings Bank sale proceeds

Members of parliament on Tuesday took the government to task over the Malawi Savings Bank (MSB) sale proceedings five years after it was sold to FDH Financial Holdings Group, demanding to know the whereabouts of K9 billion proceeds from the transaction.

Government sold MSB in 2015 after it failed to meet regulatory requirements to capitalise the entity as recommended by Reserve Bank of Malawi.

Dowa East MP Richard Chimwendo Banda of Malawi Congress Party (MCP) asked the Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Joseph Mwanamvekha to give an account of the sale.

In response, Mwanamvekha said all the money realized from the sale was intact.

He said the government was keeping the money which will be used for the setting up of Malawi Agricultural Industrial Court whose main function would be to improve agriculture in the country.

MCP alleges that the ruling elite colluded to benefit from the sale, arguing that some people within the ruling elite failed to repay loans to MSB, resulting in its failure to meet requirements.

At the time of sale, the MSB had 13 branches and 35 agencies.

In selling MSB, government had gone  against recommendations of the Budget and Finance Committee of Parliament whose resolution was that government should recapitalise the bank to enable it meet regulatory requirements.

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