Clifford Mettle, Executive Director for Unibank, has said that the bank’s acquisition of 51 per cent shares in the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) is a strategic alignment.

According to him, the services the two banks were already rendering to customers won’t change following the takeover.

“ADB will continue to focus on its Agric development policies and we at Unibank will also continue to focus on our SME policies,” he told Chief Jerry Forson on the Ghana Yensom show on Accra 100.5FM on March 7.

A consortium of financial institutions that control majority shares in Agric-focused bank, Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), have pledged their shares, proceeds, entitlement and voting rights to Unibank, a leading local bank. Confirming the deal to show host Forson, Mr Mettle said : “Unibank has a controlling right of ADB, we now control 51 per cent share in ADB.” He added : “For now as we speak we have the controlling right but nothing changes with the customers, all the services that they enjoyed with ADB, they will continue to enjoy those services, nothing has changed, this is a strategic alignment. “We at Unibank will continue to focus on our SME values and the ADB will continue with their Agric focus policies.”

He however did not reveal plans for the staff of the ADB following the takeover.

“I don’t want to comment on staff issues for now but redundancy is not the only way of making a company to perform. There is a meeting which is going to be held tomorrow on this move and so let us wait for the outcome of the meeting.”