First Capital Bank (FCB) says it is positioning the institution to support the transition of the country’s mining sector as attention shifts from geological potential to practical requirements of building viable projects.
FCB head of corporate and institutional banking Nagesh Shrivastava said this in a statement on Friday following the bank’s meeting with the Malawi Government officials in Perth, Australian during the Africa Down Under conference last week.
“The bank has stepped up its engagements with the mining industry as Malawi intensifies efforts to develop the sector,” he said.
Shrivastava said officials from FCB, a subsidiary of Malawi Stock Exchange-listed FMB Capital Holdings plc, held discussions with Minister of Mining Thoko Tembo and his delegation on the role financial institutions can play to support the growth of the mining sector, which contributes one percent to the country’s gross domestic product.
“Large-scale mining developments typically require substantial long-term financing, often beyond the capacity of a single lender,” he said.
In an interview on Friday, Minister of Mining Thoko Tembo challenged local commercial banks to rethink their approach to project lending, saying mining finance requires a deeper understanding of project cycles, commodity risks and technical studies.
He said conventional bank lending models often fail to capture the realities of mining ventures.
Tembo urged banks to develop innovative instruments and partnerships to mobilise capital across different stages of mining development.
Malawi’s mining industry is under expansion, with three major projects, Kayelekera Uraniun Mine in Karonga, Lindian Resources’ Kangankunde Rare Earths Project in Balaka and Globe Metals and Mining’s Kanyika Niobium Mine in Mzimba set for full operation by 2028.
