Dr Ernest Addison, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, has lauded GCB Bank’s contributions to the country’s socio-economic development, especially in advancing the national financial inclusion agenda.

Speaking at the GCB Bank Platinum Thought Leadership Conference, Dr Addison expressed confidence in the bank’s ability to continue pioneering change within Ghana and beyond using its extensive branch network and commitment to delivering tailored financial solutions and exceptional customer service.

“Since inception in the 1950s, with a single location, GCB Bank has expanded its footprint and reaffirmed its commitment to financial inclusion by opening over 150 branches and 11 agencies, making it the bank with the widest branch network spread across all 16 regions of Ghana.

“By bringing its services to new and remote areas, GCB has made access to financial services possible for many. Additionally, GCB has capitalized on the digital finance evolution, becoming the first bank in Ghana to launch a bank-led mobile money service (G-Money) which currently serves more than 2.7 million customers,” remarked the Governor.

The conference on the theme: “70 years of Providing Unrivalled Financial Solutions in the Socio-economic Development of Ghana,” served as a platform to discuss critical issues surrounding ethics, financial conduct, inclusion, and the reinvention of finance in Africa, with a particular focus on digital innovation as a growth catalyst, especially in challenging times like the pandemic.

Dr. Addison commended GCB Bank’s execution of Ghana’s inaugural successful Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) client transaction.

“Through consistency and resilience, GCB Bank’s most significant recent contributions to the country’s development agenda include; contributing positively to promoting financial intermediation as the second largest bank in credit extension (10.7% share of gross loans as at end-December 2023), and serving as a key facilitator of Ghana’s international trade, with dealings in letters of credit, financing medium-term loans, forward contracts, and export credit guarantee lines, among others,” he said.

“Looking ahead, I have no doubt in my mind that GCB Bank will continue to chart new horizons, shatter barriers, and inspire change within Ghana and beyond,” Dr Addison said.

The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta who was represented by the Minister of State at the Finance Ministry, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, lauded GCB for its contribution to the development of the country.

He said for the past 70 years GCB had played the financial intermediation role effectively by supporting businesses and the private sector with capital to finance their operations.

He said the current economic indicators showed the country was on the path to recovery, citing the decline in inflation to 23.2 per cent, strong performance of the Ghana Cedi and the overall real Gross Domestic Product growth of 2.8 per cent for the first three quarters of last year.

“Today, the sacrifices and commitment of government and Ghanaians have started yielding the expected economic returns, Mr Ofori-Atta stated, adding that “The economics indicators today demonstrate that indeed Ghana has turned the corner. ”

The Finance Minister said the government would continue to play its part through restoration of macro stability and growth and a more equitable and conducive environment for business operations and growth.

In his remarks, Managing Director-GCB Bank, Kofi Adomakoh, emphasized the bank’s pivotal role in Ghana’s banking sector and its commitment to resilience, growth, and community support.

“The bank has achieved many successes and also encountered challenges, but it has shown resilience and always recovered. We seek to show more of that resilience in our ability to support our customers to grow, expand their businesses, and support the communities in which we operate.

“Partnerships and engagements through discussions of this type will help shape our strategies for the future and provide economic literature for various stakeholders. Our focus on digital transformation, customer experience, risk management, investment in our human resources and ESG will spearhead our growth as a bank,” Mr. Adomakoh noted.

Mr Adomakoh said the programme was key part of the bank’s year-long anniversary celebrations and the conference was to bring together world-class and highly respected experts to share perspectives and deliberate on topics relevant to the development of the financial services sector and the national economy.

“Our goal is to collate the conference proceedings for the publication of a book that will form part of GCB’s 70th Anniversary celebrations. The book will be a significant source of information, history, facts, advocacy and reference for practitioners, scholars, researchers, academics, policymakers, and policy analysts in Ghana and other parts of the world,” he said.

The conference was attended by officials from Bank of Ghana, captains of industry, banking and financial practitioners, academics and a cross-section of the public.