Malawian tycoon Hitesh Anadkat loses more than $38 million in 110 days from stake in FMB Capital

Omokolade Ajayi -

Malawian multimillionaire businessman Hitesh Anadkat has seen his shareholding in FMB Capital Holdings (FMB Capital) plummet in value in the past 110 days, as investors remained bearish on the Malawi Stock Exchange amid fears of a global economic downturn.

According to data obtained by Billionaires.Africa, the market value of Anadkat’s 35.51-percent stake in FMB Capital has fallen by MWK39.3 billion ($38.4 million) in the past 110 days due to a persistent sell-off that has shaken the valuation of equities on the Malawi Stock Exchange.

Shares in the group have dropped from MWK145 ($0.14167) on May 18, over 110 days ago, to MWK100 ($0.0977) at the time of writing this report, resulting in a 31-percent loss for shareholders in nearly four months.

As a result of the double-digit price drop, the market value of Anadkat’s stake in FMB Capital has fallen by MWK39.28 billion ($38.38 million), from N126.57 billion ($123.67 million) on May 18 to MWK87.29 billion ($85.29 million) at the time of this report.

FMB Capital is the Mauritius-based investment holding company of FMB Capital Group, which operates in Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Anadkat, who founded the leading financial services firm in 1995, owns 35.51 percent of the Port Louis-based firm, which translates to 872,924,575 ordinary shares.

The decrease in the market value of his shareholding comes as the leading financial services group reported a 93-percent increase in profit in the first six months of 2022, from $13.1 million to $25.2 million, as the group’s banking operations in Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe all recorded profit growth.

“The improvement in profitability is a continuation of the strong momentum from the second half of 2021 and is driven by a combination of expanding corporate banking deal pipelines as well as improved cost efficiency and scale growth across all five countries’ banking operations, while maintaining credit risk management discipline,” FMB Capital explained in its financial statement.