Business Reporter
BARD Santner Microfinance Bank, which aims to tap into Zimbabwe’s multi-billion-dollar diaspora remittance market, has unveiled a 13-member multidisciplinary board comprising financial services, banking, audit and regulatory experts from Zimbabwe and several international markets.
The announcement follows the institution’s launch last week after being licenced by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and signals its focus on corporate governance, regulatory compliance and depositor protection as it seeks to establish itself as a diaspora-focused financial services institution.
The board comprises executive, non-executive and independent directors drawn from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mauritius, India and the United Kingdom. Its members bring experience from international banks, audit firms, financial regulators and corporate governance institutions.
The board is chaired by Mauritian financial expert Mr Vinod Bussawah, with independent directors Mr Roger Bennett, Mr Scott Trimble, Mr Brad Shorkend, Mr Peter Wood, Dr Roshan Boodhoo, Mr Niazi Hoolash and Monika Bhatt.
Non-executive directors are Mr Senziwani Sikhosana, Mr Tatenda Hungwe and Ms Lucia Chingwaru, while executive directors are managing director Mr Ngonidzashe Chikowore and finance director Mr Givemore Gomo.
Mr Bussawah, a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants with more than 30 years of experience in finance and governance, also chairs audit committees at two listed companies.
“Our job as a board is simple: to protect depositors’ money and to make sure the bank is run to international standards,” he said.
The board’s international experience includes Dr Boodhoo, a former chief executive of the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius and former deputy chief executive of SBM Group, one of the island nation’s largest banking groups. He also serves on the board of a Nasdaq-listed company.
Mr Trimble brings 30 years of senior management and board-level experience at HSBC, HBOS, Grant Thornton, Moore Global and the Isle of Man financial regulator. He was named UK Anti-Money Laundering Advisor of the Year in 2022 and 2023.
Mr Bennett has 40 years of experience in banking and trust services, including roles at Lloyds Bank, Canada Trust and CIBC. He is also the founder of Fortress Management Services in the Isle of Man.
Mr Hoolash, a former associate director at KPMG and senior manager at PwC, has led central-bank-mandated restructurings of commercial banks in several countries.
Mr Shorkend is an adjunct faculty member at the Gordon Institute of Business Science and Duke Corporate Education, and advises leadership teams across Europe, the United States, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Ms Bhatt practises as a company secretary, specialising in corporate law and governance.
The board also includes Zimbabwean banking expertise through Mr Wood, a former chairman of BancABC Zimbabwe, who brings experience of the domestic financial services market.
Founding Bard Santner Inc. pioneers Mr Sikhosana, Mr Hungwe and Ms Chingwaru will serve as non-executive directors, helping guide the institution’s vision and strategy. Mr Chikowore and Mr Gomo will oversee executive management and financial performance.
Mr Sikhosana, who has extensive experience in Zimbabwe’s banking and financial services sector, is the chief executive officer of the group. He was recently named 2026 Director of the Year by the Institute of Directors Zimbabwe.
Mr Chikowore said the institution had assembled local and international expertise to establish a trusted financial services business with strong governance structures from the outset.
“Zimbabweans deserve a new fintech institution they can trust. That is why we brought together experts with great track records, locally, regionally and internationally, alongside people who know this market well, to build a new diaspora-focused institution from scratch,” he said.
“We want to lay a strong foundation, ensure corporate governance and protect depositors’ funds from the word go.”
Mr Sikhosana said public confidence was central to the success of any banking institution, particularly one seeking to operate in the digital financial services space.
“Banks are founded on trust. Trust in banking is gradually earned through customer-centred, efficient and consistent service, security and transparency. Trust and the interplay of confidence and accountability become the nerve-centre of banking,” he said.
He said the responsibility extended beyond safeguarding customers’ money to protecting their confidential information and ensuring ethical conduct.
“When customers choose a bank, they are not just choosing a name or brand; they are entering a confidential relationship built on the legitimate expectation of safety of their funds, confidentiality of their information and ethical behaviour,” he said.
Mr Sikhosana said the inclusion of independent governance specialists was intended to strengthen oversight and ensure that anti-money-laundering controls and know-your-customer frameworks met international banking requirements.
He added that effective compliance would be important in maintaining relationships with foreign correspondent banks, while the separation of executive management from independent oversight would help guard against weaknesses that can emerge when financial technology businesses expand rapidly.
“As the institution begins mobilising parts of the continent’s multi-billion-dollar remittance pool into structured investment vehicles, our corporate governance model will serve as a digital-era vital blueprint. It demonstrates that for a financial intermediary to truly succeed, it must be built on a foundation of capital, customer care and compliance.”
Bard Santner has said its ambition is to develop a diaspora-focused financial institution capable of connecting remittance flows with structured investment opportunities. Its ability to achieve that ambition will depend on building customer confidence, meeting regulatory requirements and delivering reliable services in a competitive financial services market, said Mr Sikhosana.
