Centenary Rural Development Group and the Catholic Archdiocese of Lilongwe are to acquire 100% shareholding in MyBucks Banking Corporation of Malawi.
In a joint statement released today by the two institutions, together with the MyBucks Corporation Board Chairman, Dr. Francis Z. Pelekamoyo it was announced today that the duo’s bid to acquire the bank, had been accepted by the bank’s board.
“MyBucks Board of Directors would like to inform its valued customers and the public that the potential investor (a consortium of two institutions namely Centenary Rural Development Group Limited from Uganda and the Catholic Archdiocese of Lilongwe) has submitted a final binding offer to acquire 100% shareholding in the bank. The submission of the final binding offer comes after three months of conducting due diligence on the bank,” MyBucks’ reads the statement.
Prof. John Ddumba-Ssentamu the Centenary Group Chairman and The Most Rev. George Desmond Tambala, the Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lilongwe co-signed the statement.
“Meanwhile, the bank, the Receiver Manager for MyBucks S.A. (in liquidation) and the consortium are in the process of applying for all relevant regulatory approvals to finalize the acquisition. Centenary Rural Development Group Limited owns 100% of Centenary Bank of Uganda, the largest microfinance bank in Uganda,” further said the statement.
MyBucks Banking Corporation Limited was licensed on 13th May 2014 and commenced its operations on 24th July 2015. It currently has 14 branches, 3 micro-finance outlets and over 80 agency banking outlets. It also operates three Foreign Exchange Bureaus in Lilongwe (Old Town & Gateway Mall) and Limbe. The bank is a licensed commercial bank and is regulated by the Reserve Bank of Malawi.
In December 2021, the bank’s parent company MyBucks S.A. was placed into bankruptcy, before it completed the process of disposing of its 100 per cent shareholding in MyBucks Malawi to a strategic investor, with the support of the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM).
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About Centenary Rural Development Group
Centenary Rural Development Group Limited was incorporated on 25th October 2019 and became operational on 1st July 2020. The establishment of the Group structure was motivated by the shareholders’ desire for diversification and expansion, given the rapid changes within the business operating environment of the financial services sector and the digital disruptions.
The Group seeks to become the preferred Group in financial inclusion and innovative business solutions with a mission to transform lives through financial inclusion and innovative business solutions. Beyond Banking where the Group is heavily invested, the Group also has its eyes on insurance, fund management and investment, property development and management as well expanding the Centenary banking brand outside Uganda.
The Group’s flagship company, Centenary Bank is a leading commercial microfinance bank serving a quarter of Uganda’s banking population (2.6M customers) with close to 3,000 employees. These are served via a vast customer touchpoint network composed of 80 branches, 5,200 agents, 192 ATMs and online digital platforms. The bank also supports a last-mile network of 46,000 Village Savings & Lending Associations (VSLAs) and 12,000 SACCOS.
Centenary Technology Services, also known as Cente Tech is the Group’s latest offshoot that seeks to leverage ICT to enable its various subsidiaries to grow as well as provide various meaningful services to rural communities.
The Group also has a philanthropic not-for-profit arm, the Centenary Foundation, through which it works with social investors and partners to create a sustainable impact mainly in Education, Environment, Health and the Social Mission of the Catholic Church.