Standard Bank Malawi in 50 years anniversary
Standard Bank Plc, listed on the Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE) is commemorating its 50th Anniversary starting Thursday April 11 2019.
The bank has lined up a number of activities to commemorate the anniversary, starting with a high-profile stakeholders’ appreciation dinner on April 30 at Bingu International Conference Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe where Standard Bank Chief Executive (Africa Regions) Sola David -Bohra will be in attendance.
“On the occasion of our Golden Jubilee, we invite all our stakeholders and partners to join us in celebrating this great milestone. We look forward to hosting our various customers, the regulator, Private Sector, NGOs, and international organisations,” said the banks’s Chief Executive in Malawi, William le Roux.
The Bank salutes all Malawians and employees for their hard work in 50 years.
“Standard Bank wishes to express its profound gratitude to all Malawians and key partners for their support during our first 50 years. We promise to remain a solid partner in the many decades to come. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank and recognize all employees for their role in supporting growth of the Bank. To our former employees, we continue to fondly remember your contributions which have been the building blocks of where we are today,” he said in a statement made available to Nyasa Times.
Historic Context
Previously known as Commercial Bank of Malawi (CBM), the Bank was registered on 15th March 1969 as a joint venture between Malawi Government, Press Corporation, (then Press Holdings Ltd) and Banco Pinto Sotto Mayor.
The Bank opened its first branch in present-day Limbe in Blantyre, Malawi’s commercial city on 11thApril. It soon grew with Lilongwe, Mzuzu, Balaka, Mangochi, Dedza, Kasungu and Zomba added to the initial branch network. As part of its growth journey, the bank invested in two subsidiaries— Standard Bank Financial Services and Bain Hogg Insurance—to tap into the financial service advisory and insurance sectors.
By 1984, Standard Bank had become a wholly owned Malawian bank. The local shareholders comprising the Malawi Development Corporation (MDC) which held 20%, Press Holdings 40%. Malawi Government 30% and Admarc 10%.
In 1998 government diluted its shareholding by selling to Malawians and other investors through a listing on the Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE).
In 2001, Standard Bank, through its subsidiary Stanbic Africa Holdings acquired a majority stake of 60 percent stake in the then CBM, changing its trading name to Stanbic Bank. On June 1, 2007 the name change process was completed by reverting to Standard Bank.
A Market Pioneer
Standard Bank is a subsidiary of Africa’s largest bank by assets, the Standard Bank Group, listed on JSE in Johannesburg, South Africa. The holding company is 20 percent owned by the world’s largest merchant and investment bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).
In Malawi, Standard Bank has grown in stature to become one of Malawi’s leading banks. The bank’s working capital has grown from MK2.5 Million in 1969 to MK313.5 Billion (approximately US$437 Million) in 2019. The bank’s branch network has grown to 27 outlets nationwide— an average of a branch in every district of Malawi.
Standard Bank takes pride in its legacy as a pioneer and innovator. From becoming the first bank in Malawi, the bank has scored many firsts along its 50year-old history.
Some of the notable firsts include being the first to offer an ATM when ATMs were first introduced in Malawi, the first bank to appoint a woman Branch Manager and the first to have its CEO appointed as the Governor of the Malawi Central bank.
Standard Bank Malawi is also the only bank to maintain a Drive-In banking facility at its Ginnery Corner branch in Blantyre.
Moving Forward
Chief Executive William le Roux says Standard Bank continues pay attention to the needs of customers and to moving them forward along with technological changes that have ushered digital and virtual banking.
“In the past 50 years, we set the pace. Standard Bank sees the next 50 years as another opportunity to improve on the accomplishments of the past,” he said.
To commemorate the Golden Jubilee, Standard Bank has lined up a number of activities and events spread across several months of the year 2019.
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KOMA CHEPETSANI MA ENTEREST PLEASE
How many clients houses have this bank sold to its staff at give away prices? Offering a 3 % interest. Gangster bank. Colonialists mentality. No Malawian at the helm. A bank that robs it’s customers
That is price that one gets when one uses a house as a collateral in a mortgage. If the loan is not serviced as per agreement between the mortgagee and mortgagor, the sale is triggered by the former to get back whatever was accrued – interest plus principal sum. The sale is regulated by the Registered Land Act (cap. 58:01). At the core of its use is the need to protect the interest of the mortgagee and mortgagor. Malawians are capable of running that bank. But time is not rip. A Malawian once headed it in an acting capacity, a… Read more »
Ndaphunziratu apa. I always thought National Bank was the first and oldest in Malawi. Happy Anniversary
the oldest is NBS Bank
When was NBS Bank established in Malawi?
NBS was established in 1964…
Oooh now it is clear. It was then a building society that dealt specifically in mortgages as per regulations outlined in the Building Societies Act in the Laws of Malawi that has over the years been amended.
NBS Bank, though transacting banking services, was not a commercial bank . It was a building society whose primary aim was to provide housing mortgages to its depositors ( the customers). It was previously called New Building Society. NICO Holdings acquired it and turned it from a building society to a commercial bank and renamed it NBS Bank. In the financial services industry, there are differences between a central bank, a commercial bank, an investment bank, a new building society, and an insurance company even though they all provide financial services. The Reserve Bank of Malawi has a long way… Read more »
Correct. That Commercial Bank of Malawi, now Standard Bank, is the oldest bank in the country stands!!
Chimulirenji, read the article carefully. It didn’t say that Standard Bank ( then called Commercial Bank of Malawi) was the first commercial bank in Malawi. For your information, the first commercial bank in Malawi was actually National Bank of Malawi (then called Barclays Bank).