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Business news for Saturday, October 3, 2020
Source: GNA
2020-10-03
Kojo Mattah, Managing Director of Apex Bank
Kojo Mattah, Managing Director of the Association of Rural Banks (ARB) Apex Bank has said that despite the growth of rural banking through a rigorous cleanup of the sector and an unexpected pandemic, business in the sector still recovered.
He said the management and boards of directors of rural and community banks (RCB) had been consistent in pursuing innovation in service and digital technology, resulting in deposit growth of 3.88 billion per year. closing of 2019 of the 2.85 billion cedis in 2017.
“Despite the impact of COVID-19, we have seen a modest level of growth from 4.03 billion GHS at the end of March 2020 to 4.23 billion at the end of June 2020,” Mattah added.
The Director spoke at the opening of the 19th Annual Apex Bank Directors Conference in Ho, which had as its theme “The Speed of Change.”
He said the Bank would maintain the current ‘momentum for results-oriented change’ that was driving the progress of RCBs.
“We can say without hesitation that our quest to harness the power of innovation and digitization for sustainable growth has yielded some tangible results. Today we can boast of a modern ICT backbone, which is helping us develop innovative customer-centric products for RCB customers, ”said the Director.
Mattah noted that innovation remained a key growth pillar and had driven the improvement of the ICT operational platform for RCGs, resulting in the development of “relevant and competitive products and improved services.”
He said the fulfillment of his promise to introduce a formidable agency banking service, a mobile banking service, an important component of the initiative, had been put into operation.
“We are almost done with full integration with the largest mobile network operator, MTN. However, all RCB customers with Vodafone and Airtel-Tigo numbers can register in mobile banking.
“With that, they can do a lot of services,” he said, adding that a data center upgrade scheduled for completion in November 2020 will improve communication and also facilitate the smooth running of mobile and online banking services.
Mr. Mattah mentioned that four important cyber and information security and requirements of the Ghana Financial Sector Development Project had been given the green light and that, upon completion, they would provide world-class data and network security for RCBs. .
He said that in February 2020, the Bank received ISO 27001: 2013 certification, making it a pioneer in banking certification in Ghana, and also envy within the financial and data security space.
“The certification is a validation of our ability to provide an exceptional experience to our customers. It is a hallmark of trust in our people, systems and processes and a strong announcement to our partners and clients that the Bank and our RCB members have come a long way and are prepared to provide superior service to clients, ”said Mattah.
It stated a partnership with Ghana’s interbank settlement and payment systems, which it said had been successful, including providing RCB clients with access to the services of GOIL and KFC branches across the country.
The Director asked stakeholders to consider the wind of unexpected change that swept across the world and come together to carry the storm into a prosperous future.
“We need to pause to count our losses and rather plan for the future. As an industry, we must quickly plan how to take advantage of the opportunistic business opportunities that the arrival of COVID-19 has brought us in the first place.
“Second, we must develop a strategy on how to take advantage of the permanent trade pathways that the virus has unleashed in the world,” he said.
Yaw Sarpong, Head of the Bank of Ghana’s Other Financial Institutions Oversight Department (OFISD), said the cleanup of the sector restored confidence in banking and called on stakeholders to view the coronavirus pandemic as “ a call from attention to revive our ways of doing things. “
He added that the Bank of Ghana remained committed to providing adequate regulatory support.
Togbe Kotoku XI, Supreme Head of the Kpenoe Traditional Area and guest of honor at the event, said that the banking crisis and the subsequent clean-up of the sector caused some havoc on lives, particularly in rural communities, and called on the RCBs to revitalize the faith in banking.
The three-day conference would offer managers and executive officers the opportunity to collectively access and enhance their efforts to remain indispensable in the financial sector.
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