MINISTER JAFO COMMENDS DCB COMMERCIAL BANK PLC AS SHAREHOLDERS RECEIVE SH500 MILLION DIVIDENDS

Minister of State in the President's Office, Regional Administration and Local Government, Selemani Jafo (centre), presents a dummy cheque worth 138.6 million as dividend from DCB Commercial Bank PLC to Temeke District Commissioner, Godwin Gondwe (first left). Second left is DCB Commercial Bank PLC Chief Executive Officer, Godfrey Ndalahwa.

Dar es Salaam - Three shareholders with the DCB Commercial Bank Plc pocketed a total of Sh287 million in dividends recently as the 18-year old lender returns restarts issuance of dividends.

The Dar es Salaam City Council (DCC) received Sh138 million while UTT-Asset Management and Investor Services (UTT-Amis) and the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) received Sh119 million and Sh30 million respectively and other shareholders receive 200 million.

The money is part of a total dividends of Sh500 million that the DCB Bank Plc approved during its 18th Annual General Meeting which was conducted virtually in June this year (2020).

The Sh500 million was part of the bank’s Sh2.1 billion net profit for the year ending December 31, 2019.

The Minister of State in the President’s Office (Regional Administration and Local Government) Selemani Jafo graced the event to present dummy cheaques to the relevant shareholders in Dar es Salaam recently.

Speaking during the event, Mr Jafo commended the DCB Commercial Bank board and management for driving the lender profitably during the past years and thus releasing return on investments to shareholders.

“That this bank has registered tremendous achievements during the past years is quite commendable. It has been issuing dividends to shareholders for 10 years now and this signifies that the board and management have been working hard to live in accordance with the reasons for which the bank was established, which is, to help small scale traders with their financing needs,” he said.

The government, he said, was confident that the banking sector was remained key in the attainment of Tanzania’s development goals.

He commended the Bank of Tanzania and Tanzania Bankers Association for what he termed as candid advice that saw the country navigating well through various challenges, including during the Covid-19 pandemic.

DCB Commercial made a Sh995 million profit in 2018 but its shareholders decided to utilize the money in consolidating the lender’s capital, according to managing director, Mr Godfrey Ndalahwa.

He said at the event that his management embarked on a strategic focus in 2018, with a specific target to ensure that the bank was back to its profitable times within one year.

The bank, he said, had strategized to consolidate itself across all parameters within two years and that after that, it would start extending its services in the third year.

“I am happy to report here today that we have in three years, we have achieved a lot. We have been operating profitably. We have also managed to raise its capital through the sale of shares in 2019. We are now very strong in terms of capital. We have managed to reduce the level of Non-Performing Loans while liquidity has greatly improved, all courtesy of the advice that we have been receiving from the Bank of Tanzania and other government agencies,” he said.

He said DCB Commercial Bank Plc has successfully turned from loss making to a profit making entity during the past few years.

“With 200,000 customers, DCB is among the five top banks [in terms of customer numbers] out of about Tanzania’s almost 60 banks…We are now growing,” he said.

DCB Commercial Bank was established in 2002 as Dar es Salaam Community Bank. In 2008, it became the first bank to be listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange and its names changed to DCB Commercial Bank Plc.

The bank, which was originally owned by Ilala, Temeke and Kinondoni municipalities as well as the DCC, became a public company after its Initial Public Offering. It changed its name to DCB Commercial Bank Plc in 2012.