Abokobi Rural Bank posts GHc309,222 profit
By Patrick Obeng, GNA
Accra, Aug. 12, GNA — The Abokobi Area Rural Bank Limited posted a net profit of GHc309,222 last year as against GHc370,354 in 2018, incurring a dip of a little over eight per cent.
However, the Bank’s total assets rose from GHc18,111,561 in 2018 to GHc23,121,555 in 2019 representing an increase of 27.66 per cent, whilst customer deposits also increased to GHc18,311,904 in 2019 from GHc15,970,198 in 2018, accounting for an increase of 14.66 per cent.
Naa Odofoley Nortey, Board Chairperson of the Bank, disclosed this at its 28th Annual General Meeting at Abokobi in the Ga East Municipality of the Greater Accra Region.
She said the woes of the financial sector resulting from the clean-up exercise by the regulators, which commenced in 2017 through to 2018, worsened in 2019, resulting in the revocation of operational licenses of 347 microfinance and microcredit institutions.
Naa Nortey said 23 savings and loans companies and financial houses as well as 53 fund management companies also had their licenses revoked.
She said coupled with heightened speculations that the Bank of Ghana would revoke the licenses of some rural and community banks, resulted in increased withdrawals by customers, thereby affecting the operation of the Bank.
Naa Nortey said amid the above and the rippling effects on operations in the sector, the Board took a strategic step to ensure that it remained profitable.
“This included but was not limited to ensuring that all withdrawals of customers during this time was fully honoured while maintaining liquidity,” she said.
The Board Chairperson said in spite of the pandemic and its attendant woes, “we will remain committed to growing the Bank while maximizing shareholders value.”
She said the Bank was committed to social and prudent credit administration procedures to ensure that loan losses were reduced to the bearest minimum while pursuing previous delinquent loans with effective and efficient recovery strategies.
“We remain committed to improving our digitisation drive relating to our mobile money products, E-Zwich services and other options available to ensure that we are not left behind in the national digitization drive in the sector.”
GNA
