Steward Bank seeks name change to TN Cybertech Bank, hinting at strategic shift
Steward Bank Limited has applied to the Registrar of Companies to change its name to TN Cybertech Bank Limited, signalling a potential strategic shift in Zimbabwe’s banking sector. A public notice issued last week states that the bank is seeking approval for the change within 14 days, as required by the Companies and Other Business Entities Act [Chapter 24:31].
The notice reads: “Notice is hereby given in terms of the Companies and Other Business Entities Act (Chapter 24:31) that application be made not less than 14 days from the date of this notice, to the Registrar of Companies, for his approval to change the following company name: Steward Bank Limited (Company No. 919/70) to TN Cybertech Bank Limited.”
The move marks a full-circle moment for the financial institution, which originally operated as TN Bank before being acquired and rebranded by Econet Wireless Zimbabwe into Steward Bank.
In response to public interest surrounding the proposed name change, Mr Tawanda Nyambirai, founding director of the original TN Bank, shared his thoughts on X (formerly Twitter).
“A legal notice on the change of name of Steward Bank Limited has generated a lot of interest here on X. I do not have the authority to speak for the bank or for EcoCash Holdings Limited,” he wrote.
Mr Nyambirai emphasised the importance of allowing corporate governance processes to take their course, particularly for publicly listed companies.
“These companies have their governance structures and processes that must be followed. Unfortunately, the rapid development of social media has not been matched by the evolution of corporate governance structures and processes,” he added.
“The processes of change of name, especially for a listed company, are protracted and will involve the issuance of circulars to shareholders. We shall seek the authority of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange to publish an update on the name changes. The update shall seek to answer some of the questions that have been raised.”
On the subject of the proposed name itself, Mr Nyambirai offered a broader philosophical perspective.
“All I can say for now is that a name, looked at in abstract, might be meaningless. But the way the owner of the name carries his or her name will give a lot of meaning to the name. The present generation would have demanded that Henry Wells and William Fargo change their names first, before they named their bank, Wells Fargo, after themselves.”
“But the way the bank has carried its name has created a lot of equity around the brand. A lot can be said about other bank names, especially Zimbabwean bank names that do not seem to have any obvious meanings at all. But the goodness of a name will depend upon how the owner of the name carries the name.”-chroncile
