Fidelity Bank will meet the Bank of Ghana’s (BoG) minimum capital requirement of GHS400m by the 31 December 2018 deadline, the bank’s Managing Director, Jim Baiden, has said.

Speaking to customers and officials of the Bank of Ghana at a customer appreciation dinner in Accra, Mr Baiden said the bank’s current capital position is very close to the new capital requirement.

“I wish to assure our deputy governor of the Bank of Ghana, Elsie, here with us tonight that so far, we haven’t lost sleep at all over the new minimum capital requirement of GHS400million. This is because our current capital position is substantially close to the new minimum capital requirement before the end of year”.

He added that: “Our strong corporate governance systems and our disciplined prudential lending culture ensure that customers’ deposits are safe and we are able to meet our maturing obligations to our customers at all times”.

The assurance comes as local banks plead for an extension of the deadline to 2021.

Some industrial players have advised banks struggling to raise enough capital to meet the new requirement to consider merging with other banks.