Centenary Bank’s new Managing Director Godfrey Byekwaso has formally taken over management of Centenary Bank closing 16-yeas chapter of his predecessor Fabian Kasi.
He assumed the role on 1 July 2026, succeeding Kasi, who had led Centenary since 2010. Byekwaso is a long-serving member of the Centenary group, joining the Ugandan bank in 2012 as general manager for finance. In 2023 he was appointed deputy managing director of Centenary Bank Malawi, the group’s first cross-border venture and the first such expansion by a Ugandan bank, before being elevated to managing director there in October 2024.
He is credited with turning the Malawi operation to profitability, with deposits rising 55% and assets 46% in his first full year at the helm. Earlier in his career he held executive positions at FINCA Uganda and FINCA International’s Africa region.
A certified public accountant and fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, Byekwaso holds a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Commerce in accounting from Makerere University. He has also chaired the operations committee of the Bankers Association of Malawi and sits on the Global Preparers Forum, a body affiliated with the International Accounting Standards Board.
He takes charge of a bank of considerable scale. As of December 2025, Centenary held assets exceeding Shs8.6 trillion, posted profit after tax of Shs424.2 billion, and served more than 3.4 million customers, with deposits of Shs5.27 trillion and a loan book of Shs4.16 trillion.
Byekwaso has signalled continuity over rupture, telling an earlier media engagement that his priority would be to protect the trust customers place in the bank while quickening the pace of digital service. “Customers now want speed service, convenient service, and therefore we need to accelerate our delivery of that good customer experience,” he said, adding that the bank would keep serving farmers, youth, women and rural communities through accessible financial solutions. He described inheriting an institution in good health rather than one in crisis, thanking Kasi for handing over “a ship that is not docking but continuing to sail.”
Kasi, for his part, is not leaving the fold. He moves up to become chief executive of Centenary Group, the holding company overseeing Centenary Bank, Centenary Bank Malawi, Centenary Technology Services, Centenary Foundation and Centenary Property Development and Management Services. He is expected to support Byekwaso through the transition before fully assuming his group responsibilities, framing the moment as one of stewardship rather than ownership. “When we are given institutions to lead, we don’t own them, but rather we are supposed to steward them and ensure that we leave them in a better state than we found them,” Kasi said.
Under Kasi’s tenure, Centenary grew from an indigenous, church-founded lender into one of Uganda’s dominant banks, expanding its branch footprint, deepening financial inclusion and building out its digital channels
Byekwaso was accompanied to the Central Bank by Executive Director for Operations Michael Opira and by Kasi, whose presence underscored a deliberately phased handover. The introduction carries regulatory weight: managing director appointments at commercial banks require the approval of the Bank of Uganda, which Byekwaso secured ahead of taking office.
Centenary Bank is Uganda’s leading microfinance-oriented commercial bank, achieving massive growth through strong asset expansion, a widespread rural footprint, and strategic financial inclusion. It operates over 80 branches and thousands of agent banking locations nationwide
The Bank grew past UGX 8.6 trillion, cementing its place as one of the largest financial institutions in the country.
The Bank serves over 3.4 million active customers, heavily targeting rural communities, smallholder farmers, and micro-entrepreneurs
