Breman Brakwa (C/R), Aug. 6, GNA- Mr Joseph Clottey, Head of the Banking Supervision Department of the Bank of Ghana (BOG) at the weekend commended the Brakwa-Breman Rural Bank, for increasing its net-worth from 129.39 million cedis to 1,159.43 million cedis between January and April this year.

The bank also increased loans to its customers by 68.78 percent for the same period.

Mr Clottey, who was addressing the bank's eighth annual general meeting at Brakwa in the Central Region, said the BOG, was satisfied with the level of financial services the bank was offering by way of support to commerce, agriculture and micro-economic ventures in its catchment areas.

He, however, cautioned against the "unbridled" expansion of credit facilities and urged the management to minimise loan losses in order to increase profits.

Effective internal control measures should be instituted to discourage fraudulent actions or practices likely to undermine the stability of the banks and adversely affect their operations, he said. There was the need for proper feasibility studies on viability of new agencies/mobilisation centres, as well as the need to obtain the approval of the BOG before committing funds to such projects. He said the measures were important since it was on record that weak internal controls had to a large extent, contributed to the collapse of many rural/community banks, and continued to threaten smooth operations of others.

Mr Clottey said the BOG would continue to evolve strategies for sound and effective banking practices, "since in the years ahead, the banking public would look out for banks with improved customer service." Chairman of the board of directors of the bank, Mr. E.K.A. Obeng, announced that the bank had instituted a bursary scheme for deserving children of shareholders and that a 'mobilisation centre' would soon be opened at Odoben to increase the volume of its operations.