ZB and FBC building societies axed after exits, merger

ZB and FBC building societies just had their licenses yanked, but it's not a meltdown. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe cancelled them for two different reasons. ZB Building Society gave up its license voluntarily because its parent company, ZB Financial Holdings, decided to shut it down and stick with just its regular bank, ZB Bank Limited. Meanwhile, FBC Building Society lost its license because it got merged into FBC Bank. The central bank's registrar, Phillip Madamombe, put out the notices.

For ZB, this is a managed shutdown. They told their customers months ago that accounts would close. People could move their money to ZB Bank Limited or another bank. Anyone who did not do that will get paid back through a liquidation process. The RBZ says ZB Building Society actually has enough money to cover all its debts, calling it solvent. They are going through a voluntary liquidation to pay everyone back.

The FBC situation is simpler. It is just a corporate merger approved by the finance minister. FBC Holdings Limited combined the building society with its bank. The merged operation will keep using the FBC Bank Limited name. The old building society license was handed over for cancellation as part of that deal.

In both cases, the central bank emphasized that depositor funds were protected through these processes. ZB Building Society, following the cancellation, no longer legally exists as a building society.