Zambia’s largest indigenous bank by asset size and profitability, Zanaco Plc, has defied the odds and redefined banking overnight by being a debut partner bank on Digital PayGo shared agent banking platform. The Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) bank has disrupted the Zambian commercial banking space with a platform banking initiative no bank has dared to offer. The shared agent banking pilot went live on April 06, with 200 Zanaco Xpress agents. The platform will converge an array of banks and financial service providers to allow for complex interoperability in the quest to unlock value. Digital PayGo provides for bespoke interoperability…
Author: The Editor
Globally, the petroleum industry has has gyrated between pandemic supply disruption effects and fluctuating demand-supply fundamentals causing international crude prices to seesaw between extremes, troughs and peaks. Pandemic risk and not so long ago, the Suez canal blockage effects on global supply chains caused record trade hemorrhage in billions of dollars. Africa’s second largest copper producer Zambia, has not been spared from these kinds of supply disruptions blips recent of which into the Easter festivities, petroleum transportation suffered a major set back. This was orchestrated by indigenous fuel transporters that commenced a strike action over requiring a greater share of…
Barely eight months after exiting the central bank in Africa’s red metal producer Zambia, a few days after the pen-ultimate rate decision (MPC) meeting of 2020, former monetary policy head Dr. Denny Kalyalya has been named Co-Chair of the International Development Associations twentieth replenishment (IDA20) by donor and borrower country representatives of the World Banks special wing set to launch in April. As co-chair, Kalyalya will champion stronger policy and financial support for IDA20 at political and other stakeholder levels across IDA donor and borrower countries. Zambia’s Kalyalya will co-chair the IDA20 Replenishment process alongside Axel van Trotsenburg, the World…
Veteran accountant Hastings Mtine was on March 31, at a post annual general meeting press briefing named board chair of the largest indigenous bank – ZANACO Plc – in Africa’s copper producer, Zambia. The Lusaka Securities Exchange – LuSE listed bank is the Southern Africans nation largest local bank by both asset and profitability size. Hastings Mtine ascends to the board chair role taking over from Charity Lumpa, the first ever female chairperson in the history of the bank. Until this appointment, Mtine serves as Non Executive Director and Deputy Board Chair. Mtine is a fellow of the Association of…
The competition regulator in Africa’s copper producer Zambia has fined cement ‘oligopolistic’ producers Lafarge and Mpande Limestone 10% of annual turnover for two financial periods namely 2019 and 2020 for purported ‘unbridled business’ behaviours amounting to uncompetitive practices through purported price fixing. In a press release from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), Lafarge Zambia Plc and Mpande Limestone Limited were fined 10% of their 2019 and 2020 turnovers for price fixing and division of markets while Dangote Cement was granted full leniency for having co-operated with the commission during investigations. The CCPC Board has ordered all three cement…
Zambia’s largest indigenous bank by asset size and profitability, the Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) listed Zambia National Commercial Bank (ZM:ISIN0000000250) has demonstrated relentless partnership in the copper producer, Zambia’s economic growth agenda through financing key pillar sectors. One area the big strong reliable bank can be given credit for is agribusiness which has been its historical focal point especially in helping small scale farmers realise their potential and in so doing simultaneously financing the food security agenda as Zambia navigates its strides to be the continents bread basket. ZANACO Plc on March 30, sealed a landmark partnership with the German Development Cooperation…
As economies start to relax pandemic lockdown protocols, airline business will seek to claw back lost business from suppressed activity in the last one year plus. Despite a turbulent operating environment given a plummet in tourism activity and general travel to and from Zambia, Proflight Zambia an indigenous airline has stood the test of time with solid operational resilience in the pandemic time. Proflight will now seek to leverage off a re-opening Southern Africa to connect Livingstone, Zambia’s tourist capital, to the richest city in Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa. With the suspension of South African Airline flights between Livingstone and…
The commercial banking industry in Africa’s copper producer, Zambia, has observed a pattern in board oversight that has former central bankers head the governance committee’s. Just recently, Absa Plc appointed former Deputy Governor Operations Dr. Austin Mwape while Standard Chartered Bank has former Governor Dr. Caleb Fundanga as its chairman. Other banks include Indo Zambia whose board is chaired by former Governor Dr. Michael Gondwe. UBA Zambia has given these appointments a similar but unique twist by appointing former Deputy Governor Administration Dr. Tukiya Kankasa Mabula to head its board defying the gender odds making her the first female chairperson…
Zambia’s central bank set out to raise K12.3billion through sale of treasury bills and bonds in the first quarter of 2021. This was to be attained through 6-treasury bill and 3-fixed income debt sales. Quarterly performance reveals that the Bank of Zambia raised a total K10.9billion, 11.29% shy of the 1Q21 target with the treasury bills outperforming the bonds, a risk theme dictated by duration concerns in light of of a confluence of factors to include country risk concerns. Of the K7.8billion of shorter dated assets sold, the central bank raised K8.5billion an 8.5% above budget in 4 over-subscriptions while…
Two of Zambia’s top IFLR 1000 rated lawyers, have partnered to incorporate Moira Mukuka Legal Practitioners (LP). Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) and corporate finance lawyer Sharon Sakuwaha and Banking and Finance (B&F) lawyer Brenda Mutale Chanda, have joined forces to meet innovation and complexity in a fast evolving world. Despite the current economic posture of Africa’s second largest copper producer, Zambia, marred by rising debt, spiralling inflation and currency woes, the two Co – Managing Partners continue to discern opportunity signalled by decade forecasts of $15,000/MT red metal prices driven by Greenfield projects such as the electric car era that will spur base metal demand,…