National Investment Bank Limited (NIB) not being taken over by GCB Bank

The Graphic Business Newspaper on Tuesday 11th July, 2017 published on its front page a story with the headline “GCB plans to take over NIB” written by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila.

The fundamental claim of this story was that GCB Bank Limited had made overtures to take over the National Investment Bank Limited (NIB).

On the 25th of July, 2017 Starr FM Online published a news story with the headline “GCB Bank, NIB not merging - BoG”.

The story was generated from an interview Starr Business had with the Head of Banking Supervision at Bank of Ghana, Raymond Amanfu.

In the interview Mr. Amanfu confirmed that in his investigations and feedback he had received from both Managing Directors of the two (2) banks, there was no such discussion regarding the supposed takeover.

The same Graphic Business news story which was published on 11th July, 2017 has resurfaced, this time on social media (Facebook and Whatsapp) with Graphic Online being the source of the revised story.

The only difference however, was in the purported date for the alleged meeting between the Boards of GCB Bank and NIB.

Whereas the Graphic Business newspaper had stated 5th July, 2017 as the date the meeting was held, the social media version stated 15th August, 2017 as the meeting date.

By this statement we wish to clarify and confirm that the Board of NIB was inaugurated on Friday 18th August, 2017. This is a clear indication that the NIB Board could not have been in any of the alleged meetings with GCB Bank.

We wish to assure all NIB customers, that there is NO ongoing discussions regarding a merger between GCB Bank and NIB or a takeover of NIB by GCB Bank.

We appreciate your unwavering loyalty and the confidence you have reposed in NIB. We encourage current customers to keep doing business with NIB and prospective customers to join NIB, as we are determined to ensure excellent service delivery to you.

Issued by NIB Board of Directors

Signed

Sheila Ofori-Diabene

Board Secretary

Published unedited

Editor’s comment

The GRAPHIC BUSINESS stands by the story. We have further been informed by our reliable sources that GCB Bank has deferred the planned takeover after capitalising on a rare opportunity to assume ownership of two failed banks.

We have been informed that the decision to halt the process was a strategic one meant to ensure that GCB Bank, which is majority state-owned, has enough time and space to manage the contagion that the historic purchase and assumption (P&A) of the erstwhile UT and Capital banks will bring on the bank’s operations.

It will also give GCB Bank the necessary space and time to properly assess the impact of the P&A on the bank's growth agenda.

The outcome of those assessments will then determine the next line of action by GCB as far as NIB is concerned, one source familiar with the discussions told the paper.