Bosomtwe Rural Bank protects depositors’ funds

Bosomtwe Rural Bank Limited at Kuntanase in the Bosomtwe District in the Ashanti Region has signed onto the Ghana Deposit Protection Scheme which was established by the Ghana Deposit Protection Act 2018 (Act 968).

The primary objective of signing onto the scheme is to protect a small depositor from loss incurred a result of the occurrence of an insured event.

The directors of the bank are of the view that the interest of depositors has become paramount and that informed the decision to sign on to the Deposit Protection Scheme.

Small depositors have been identified as the ones who suffer most when a bank is confronted with liquidity challenges and eventually collapses and this scheme will be a mechanism to cushion the small depositor when a bank is faced with an unfortunate situation and the regulator decides to close down or revoke the banking licence.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the bank, Mr Philip Edward Kwabena Antwi, made this known in an address read on his behalf by Mr Benjamin Osei-Boateng, the Vice Chairman, during the bank’s 29th annual general meeting at Kuntanase in the Ashanti Region.

The bank managed to pull yet another satisfactory operational performance in almost all the financial indicators in the 2018 year under review as shown in the table.

Operational Performance

The bank’s deposits increased by 18.53 per cent from about GH¢53.7 million in 2017 to approximately GH¢63.8 million in 2018.

The board has appreciated the continued support and confidence reposed in the bank by its customers and the hard work of the staff in deposits mobilisation and inculcating the culture of saving in the people.

The bank’s investment increased by 22.42 per cent from a little over GH¢30.8 million in 2017 to about GH¢37.7 million in 2018.

During the year under review, the bank’s loans and advances portfolio also increased by 29 per cent from about GH¢17.9 million in 2017 to approximately GH¢23.1 million in 2018.

This is attributable to speedy processing and disbursement of term loans which have in the past contributed significantly to the banks’s loan growth.

Share Capital

The bank’s paid up capital was GH¢3,632,050 as of December 31, 2018 and has further increased to about GH¢3,800,000 at the close of business on July 31, 2019. The amount which far exceeds the Bank of Ghana’s minimum threshold is about 280 per cent more than the minimum one million cedis required by all rural banks to be achieved by February 2020. New share purchases solely accounted for this significant increase of GH¢1,579,687.

Dividend

The board was unable to recommend the payment of dividend. That, according to the board chairman, was because the bank was duty bound to uphold prudential guidelines from the regulator, and implement International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

The financial sector meltdown and the need to build the bank’s liquidity buffers were also taken into consideration.

Corporate Social Responsibility

The bank continues to offer assistance to communities and institutions within its operational areas in terms of community development projects and financial support which amounted to GH¢33,900. The major economic areas that benefited included Education, health, sports and recreation and security.

Future outlook

The Chief Executive Officer of the Bank, Mr Francis Agyei Bekoe, in an interview with Graphic Business, said the bank’s business focus in 2019 was on driving growth, innovation, efficiency and service as the main pillars in achieving profitability.

According to him, signing on to the Ghana Deposit Protection Scheme was one of the steps the board had taken to build public confidence in the bank.

He emphasised that the board was determined to continue to formulate strategic policies and plans which would improve on the bank’s deposit base.