Access Bank commits to stronger partnership with SMEs

The Divisional Head of Retail Banking of Access Bank, Mr Stephen Abban, has given an assurance that the bank remains committed to partnering to ensure the growth and sustainability of small and medium enterprises in the country.

At the second Graphic Business/Access Bank SME Clinic held in Kumasi on Wednesday, Mr Abban said Access Bank understood the dynamics of the operations of SMEs and that had placed the bank in pole position to offer the needed technical and financial support.

He said the bank was well-placed to play the role of equal partners with the SMEs to ensure their sustainability.

"Our objective is to champion the growth of SMEs to remain resilient as trends change, particularly now that everything is digital".

The theme of the programme was' Championing SMEs growth through digitalisation — M'adwuma Mpontuo' attracted 250 business owners in Kumasi.

Participants were taken through how to build a sustainable business leveraging digitalisation.

They were also oriented on how to file their taxes using the digital platforms of the Ghana Revenue Authority among others.

Business advisory services

Mr Abban said apart from providing financial services, the bank offered business advisory services to SMEs after their challenges had been diagnosed.

"Because we are committed to small businesses, we understand their needs better and we provide the right solutions to their challenges".

The Managing Director of Boris 'B' Farms, Dr Boris Babu commended Access Bank for their services and being responsive to the needs of their customers.

He said one of the challenges of many SMEs was the lack of appreciation of the nature of their businesses by some banks.

Dr Babu said, "Sometimes because some of the banks do not understand how our businesses operate, it becomes challenging for some of the SMEs to access  credit and even if they are granted the facility, they are made to pay high interest rates.

"The risk mark up on the loans make it more costly.

" We need some of these banks to study and understand our business and the cyclical nature of our inflows," he said.