FDH Financial Holdings Limited group chief executive officer (CEO) Thom Mpinganjira shared on success, in a speech titled ‘Building a Business Empire’ at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Malawi (Icam) in Lilongwe on Wednesday.

Mpinganjira said above all else, one has to put God first and that a business requires what he called a spiritual return on investment through corporate social responsibility. He advised people to take gradual steps for small daily wins, rather than push for big wins. “You will hit many walls, you will fall many times, people will laugh at you but you must remain steadfast in your goals.”

He gave an example of how he was acquiring for a license for First Discount House in 2000. He spoke of how the the process was lengthy and discouraging but he kept on and acquired the license. “..the then minister of Finance rejected the application on April 5 2001 because the Government of Malawi had agreed with the International Monetary Fund and World Bank to get out of the financial services sector; hence, MDC was, therefore, not allowed to get into this new venture with First Discount House.”

FDH Financial Holdings Limited (FDHFHL) FDHFHL was established in November 2007 as part of the group restructuring to replace First Discount House Limited (FDH), as the holding company of the FDHFHL Group. FDH was incorporated in accordance with the Companies Act on 8 March 2000 and commenced operations on 8 April 2002. The company was established in 2000 through a partnership that included Dr. Thomson Mpinganjira, a respected local businessman and the first Managing Director of the Company, Press Corporation Limited, Old Mutual Life Assurance (Malawi) Limited and Kingdom Financial Holdings Limited of Zimbabwe.