No. The shares of Centenary Bank are not being offered to the general public. This is an internal arrangement where the constituents of the Archdiocese – its Parishes, religious, and lay faithful - are being invited to contribute towards the Archdiocese’s shareholding in the Bank, on the understanding that they would also be beneficiaries of future dividends that accrue to the Archdiocese from the Bank. This is a model that has been implemented by its partner shareholder Centenary Rural Development Group of Uganda, and is being replicated in Malawi following its success in Uganda.

No. This arrangement is not being done through the Malawi Stock Exchange. It is an internal arrangement.

No. The Archdiocese continues to hold 49% shareholding in the Bank. The 25% stake will be redefined to indicate that the Archdiocese is holding this portion on trust on behalf of the Parishes, religious, lay faithful that have contributed. Dilution of shares may only be considered where another Diocese or strategic investor seeks to hold its shares directly in the Bank.

No. The shares will continue to be held by the Archdiocese of Lilongwe on behalf of Parishes, religious and lay faithful that make contributions. A legal structure is being established where Parishes, religious, and lay faithful will make their contribution towards the Archdiocese’s shareholding in the bank.

The Archdiocese is setting up a Fund, which has the sole purpose of pooling contributions from Parishes, religious, and lay faithful for the Archdiocese’s investment in Centenary Bank. Parishes, religious, and lay faithful will be purchasing units in this Fund as their contribution towards the investment. The Archdiocese will sign an agreement with respective contributors in conjunction with their Parishes, and certificates will be issued confirming the contribution made towards the Fund.

The current initiative is for the 3,496,593 units on offer in the Fund. There may be possibilities for purchasing of more units in the future depending on the investment needs of the Bank.

No. Contributors towards this initiative will not hold their shares directly in Centenary Bank and so will not have voting rights in Centenary Bank. The Archdiocese will continue to be the shareholder in Centenary Bank and will only hold the 25% of the shares under this initiative on trust on behalf of the contributors.

Centenary Bank Ltd is a private company regulated by the Reserve Bank of Malawi. Through this initiative, it will continue to remain so. This initiative is being implemented in line with regulations and guidance from the Reserve Bank of Malawi.

In the spirit of “MpingoNdifeTonse, TiyendeLimodzi” the Archdiocese is taking this step to enable it’s Parishes, religious and lay faithful to also have ownership in the Bank. This will make them active participants in the mission of the Bank, which is to drive financial inclusion, including and empowering people in the rural areas that are underserved by the banking industry. It will also enable future dividends to go towards Parishes, religious, and lay faithful, to support the pastoral and social development and integral mission of the church in an inclusive manner, and to contribute to the financial independence of its Parishes, religious and lay faithful. This opportunity is also being extended to the Episcopal Conference of Malawi, and Parishes, religious and lay faithful in other Dioceses.

At the time of take-over of the former MyBucks Bank, Centenary Rural Development Group of Uganda contributed 25% of the shareholding on behalf of the Archdiocese of Lilongwe due to very limited timelines to complete the transaction. The contributions that will be pooled through this initiative will be utilized to make good of the portion that Centenary Rural Development Group contributed on behalf of the Archdiocese.

Centenary Bank is currently going through a period of turn-around. At the time that Centenary Rural Development Group and the Archdiocese of Lilongwe took over the bank in March 2023, it had registered losses for 2 consecutive years, getting to aMK3.9 billionloss in 2022. This was due to the previous shareholder having been declared bankrupt and the bank being adversely affected by market sentiment. Since the takeover, the governance and management of the Bank are making all efforts to address the issues that contributed to past losses, and to put the bank on a strong growth trajectory. These efforts are bearing fruit, with the Bank returning to a profit-making position, registering MK594 million in December, 2023. The Bank registered a mid-year after-tax profit of MK292 million in June, 2024. Profits are expected to continue growing in the coming years.

A new Managing Director, Mr. Godfrey Byekwaso from Uganda, has recently been appointed to oversee the turnaround and strong growth of the Bank. A profile of the Bank is available through the Parishes and on request, which provides further details on the management, core mission, and set up of the Bank.

Each unit is going at the price of MK1769.42 (includes 2% administration fee).

The price of the unit is the price that was used at the time of purchase of the Bank in March 2023, valued at the current exchange rate.

The minimum units that a Parish can buy is one thousand (1,000) units.
The minimum units that an individual can buy is sixty (60) units.
The minimum units that a Congregation can buy is fifty-seven thousand six hundred and fifty (57,650) units.
The minimum units that a Diocese can buy is one hundred and seventy-two thousand nine hundred and forty (172,940) units.

There is currently no maximum number of units that can be purchased. All are encouraged to apply for the number of units that they can afford. The Archdiocese will assess applications that will be received and units will be allotted according to the applications. In the event that the number of units applied for exceeds the number of units on offer, rationalization will be made such allotted units may be less than what one applied for.

All applications are being administered through Parishes. Catholic lay faithful are encouraged to contact their Parish authorities to solicit an application form. A process has been put in place where all applications will be recorded by the Parish, applications will be submitted to the Archdiocese and assessed, units will be allotted, contributions will be made to a designated Bank account of the Fund, and the share contributions in the Fund based on actual received funds will be completed. Details on this process flow are also available through the Parishes.

No. Units can only be purchased as Parishes, religious, and lay faithful (either individually or as recognized groups of the Church).

Yes. Religious and Lay faithful in the diaspora can participate in the buying of units in the Fund. They must first register in the Archdiocese’s database at the following link: https://mpingoeklezia.typeform.com/to/zDhynEAb. Having registered, they must send an email to diaspora-engagement@lilongwearchdiocese.org requesting to be sent an application form. Arrangements are being made so that a virtual meeting is held to fully brief Catholics in the diaspora on how they can go about participating.

No. The Archdiocese is only inviting its Parishes, religious, and lay faithful, including those in other Catholic Dioceses in Malawi to contribute towards its shareholding in Centenary Bank. A non-Catholic that is not affiliated to the Church cannot buy units, directly or indirectly, in the Fund that is being set up for this purpose.

The Archdiocese is made up of its Parishes, zones, outstations, small Christian communities, and families. At this time, the Archdiocese is reaching out to those that make up the Archdiocese to contribute towards its shareholding in Centenary Bank. This is normal as the Archdiocese engages with these same entities on various issues on an ongoing basis. The move is not to be seen as favoritism against non-Catholics but rather the Archdiocese inviting its constituents to contribute towards the Archdiocese’s shareholding in Centenary Bank. The services of the Bank continue to be extended nationally to all regardless of their religious beliefs or ties to the Catholic Church. Non-Catholic entities that have an interest in participating would be considered on a case-by-case basis and would need to share in the values of the Archdiocese of Lilongwe in making this investment.

Yes. After units are allotted, Parishes, religious and lay faithful will be requested to make an instruction from their Centenary Bank account number to the designated Centenary Bank account of the Fund. The account number utilized for this purpose will also be used for distribution of future returns from Centenary Bank to the Archdiocese, to be administered through the Fund. Lay faithful in the diaspora are encouraged to open Foreign Currency Denominated Accounts with the Bank so as to channel their funds accordingly.

Parishes, religious and lay faithful are required to utilize their Centenary Bank account for the purpose of purchasing units through the present initiative. They are also encouraged to continue saving and transacting through these accounts as this will lead to more profits for the bank, and ultimately better returns accruing back to the contributors to the Fundin the future.

Yes. Once the Bank starts to pay out dividends to shareholders in the future as determined by the governance of the Bank, the Archdiocese will remit to the Fund, the part commensurate to what has been contributed through the Fund. These funds will then be remitted to Parishes, religious and lay faithful in accordance with the proportion that each contributed out of the total pool of funds mobilized through this initiative.

Returns will be paid out to all contributors to Fund in proportion to their contributed amount. The funds will be paid through the Centenary Bank account provided at the time of application.

Returns are to be apportioned following a decision of the Board of the Bank to pay out dividends to the Archdiocese as shareholder in the bank. These are paid out depending on the profits that the Bank has realized in any given year, and after funds for reinvestment in the Bank to drive its growth are factored in. Currently the Bank is focused on making investments that will drive its turnaround and strong growth. Therefore, dividends may not be expected in the near future. However, once the Bank starts registering high after-tax profits, dividends could then be expected to be paid. The current investment should be seen not as a short term, but rather a long-term investment. Contributors to the Fund will be informed of the performance of the Bank on an ongoing basis, including any future dividends to be paid to the Archdiocese by the Bank.

Yes. A Parish, religious, or lay faithful will be able to sell their units in future, as long as there are other potential Parishes, religious, or lay faithful willing to buy the units. An arrangement for such buying or selling of units will be available within the structure of the Fund.

The process of taking up units in the Fund will ensure that details are provided of who will be beneficiaries of the units in the event that a contributor becomes deceased.

All information handled by Parishes and the Archdiocese in implementing this initiative will be handled with strict confidentiality and all documentation utilized in administering the process will be fully safeguarded.