GCB Bank to start investment banking

GCB Bank, as part of efforts to boost its non-funded interest, has announced plans to start investment banking in the country.

The bank has subsequently transformed its Development Finance Holdings subsidiary into an investment bank to be known as GCB Security Limited.

This new subsidiary is expected to carry out all the works in investment banking and compete for business in terms of book running and investments.

This was disclosed by the Managing Director of the bank, Mr Ray Sowah, at the ‘Facts behind Figures’ event which was organised by the Ghana Stock Exchange.

He said the setting up of the new subsidiary would create another stream of income for the bank.

He said staff of the new subsidiary had already been recruited and would soon start work.

Expansion to West Africa

Mr Sowah also pointed out that the bank had plans to expand its operations into the West Africa sub-region, beginning with the English-speaking countries.

He said the bank was also exploring with a foreign partner to form a joint venture to provide insurance products and that more details of the plan would be announced later in the year.

“We are looking at the sub-region. We have an agenda of moving into various countries and we are pursuing that agenda.

We do hope that we will make investments into other countries and that will inure to the benefit of people to have the opportunity of going out to learn new things and to teach people what they have learnt here,” he explained.

Going digital

He said, in line with GCB’s strategic plan, the bank’s focus was on providing first-class banking solutions to all customers and value to stakeholders, as well as meet the everyday needs of the people.

Consequently, he said, the bank would rely heavily on safe, secure and convenient mobile and digital banking to drive the agenda of bringing banking to the door step of the people.

“We want to let people from all walks of life, especially the un-banked, to have access to this banking in a way they have never had before.

We have a mobile banking wallet which is coming out shortly and in this, there is going to have a refreshing progress,” he said.
He said the bank would soon start its mobile wallet, internet banking with trade solution, mobile application and agency banking.

“The banking landscape is changing and competition is no longer restricted to only the banks but clearly the telcos are growing in ascendancy because they have contemporary stage of hard digital platforms and so they have access to significant pool of money.”

“Our strategy, therefore, is to rope in these people and transition all of these new entrants on to our digital platform and bring them into the high levels of financial integration by offering a wide range of financial services and opportunities overtime,” he noted.

First quarter performance

The bank’s total deposits increased from GHȼ6.9 billion in the first quarter of 2018 to GH¢ 8.4 billion, representing an increase of 22 per cent, while loans also grew from GH¢ 2.1 billion to GH¢ 3.09 billion, representing a growth of 41 per cent.

The bank’s assets also grew by 14 per cent from GH¢ 9.64 billion in the first quarter of 2018 to GH¢ 10.95 billion in the first quarter of 2019.

Operating income also shot up from GH¢ 262 million to GH¢ 354 million, representing a jump of 35 per cent, while profit before tax also grew from GH¢ 53 million to GH¢ 92 million, representing a growth of 72 per cent.