Stanbic Bank commits GH¢1.3m to support COVID-19 fight

Stanbic Bank Ghana has made a total investment of GH¢1.3 million to support ongoing national efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19.

This was revealed when the management of the bank donated 300 personal protective equipment (PPEs) to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra on Monday, April 6, 2020.

Stanbic Bank’s Covid-19 intervention will also include a donation of an additional 200 PPEs to hospitals and medical centres in the country, procurement of 5,000 complete testing kits and sourcing of ventilators for the country through the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).

 At the short donation exercise, the Head of Marketing and Communications of Stanbic Bank, Mr Mawuko Afadzinu, said the severity of the impact of the Covid-19 placed a responsibility on everyone to ensure that the situation was contained.

Collective responsibility

“This is a time for collective responsibility where a successful fight against this pandemic requires that we all do our part; whether in respecting lockdown protocols or contributing in various ways to stem the spread of the virus.

“For us at Stanbic Bank, we believe Ghana is our home and our commitment to drive its growth will continue to find expression in interventions such as this support for the fight against the Covid-19 virus,” Mr Afadzinu said.

Receiving the items, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital, Dr Daniel Asare, thanked the bank for the gesture and hoped that other financial institutions would emulate the gesture.

“We are grateful to Stanbic for this intervention because PPEs are very critical resources for frontline health personnel as they discharge their work,” the CEO said.

In addition to the donation, the bank has launched an initiative that is encouraging staff to commit at least a percentage of their salaries to the COVID-19 Fund.

Known as the ‘All for One, One For All’ campaign, it has top executives of the bank committing 30 per cent of their salaries for the next three months while other employees have committed 10 per cent of their salaries each.

Additionally, Stanbic Bank has rolled out many interventions to reduce the financial burden on customers and enhance the ease of doing business as the country fights to control the spread of the COVID-19 in the country.

The measures include a capital moratorium to customers upon request. This means that customers who have active loans with the bank can pay only the interest on the loan and not the principal amount for an agreed period.

Further, Stanbic Bank customers will enjoy two per cent reduction in interest rates.

The bank has reduced charges on all its cards to encourage the use of e-payments outlets.

Money wallet card

Currently, the loading of cedi component on Stanbic Bank’s Money Wallet card is free.

Stanbic Bank is actively driving the use of its digital channels as a way of keeping customers safe. Customers can effectively make all payments and banking enquiries in the comfort of their home using Stanbic Bank’s digital channels, with limited trips to the ATM, without having to go to a physical branch.

The bank has also increased its ATM cash withdrawal limit to GH¢10, 000 in a bid to limit in-branch transactions even for customers who need bulk cash. Consequently, the bank has increased protection at all ATM sites across the country.