FDH advances on listing plans

FDH Financial Holdings Limited has said plans to list its subsidiary FDH Bank on the 14-counter Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE) this year on course.

The listing, which is a fulfilment of the agreement the bank made with the Malawi Government when it acquired 80 percent stake in the then wholly-owned government financial institution Malawi Savings Bank (MSB), would bring the number of  banks on the shares market to five, thus offering a diversified portfolio to investors.

In a statement accompanying financial results for the year ended December 31 2019, co-signed by the bank’s board chairperson Arthur Oginga and managing director Ellias Ngalande, the bank said the listing will give a chance to the public and all Malawians to invest in the homegrown bank.

“Preparations to list the bank on the MSE this year are on track and progressing well. We are indebted to our esteemed clients, shareholders, management, staff, government, Reserve Bank of Malawi [RBM], and other stakeholders for their continued and unwavering support,” reads the statement.

In the year-ended December 31 2019, FDH Bank posted an after-tax profit of K7.84 billion, up from a profit after-tax of K5.96 billion in 2018, representing 32 percent growth while total income also grew by 18 percent from K29.066 billion to K34.389 billion.

On her part, MSE operations manager Kelline Kanyangala expressed optimism saying listings would create a wide array of securities in which investors can place their funds. 

“This is especially true for Malawi where we have seen significant growth in pension funds due to structural reforms such as the enactment of the pensions Act of 2010,”she said.

FDH Financial Holdings Limited is 40 percent owned by Old Mutual plc while M Development has 55 percent stake with five percent owned by employees.

Meanwhile, Airtel Malawi is also on the road to listing on the local shares market after successfully offering to the public 2.2 billion shares at K12.69 each through an Initial Public Offer which was over-subscribed by 34 percent.

Currently, the local shares market has 14 counters as such the listing of Airtel and FDH would later put the number of listed entities at 16.