GCB progresses under challenging conditions

The Managing Director of GCB Bank Limited, Mr. Simon Dornoo, has reiterated the bank's resolve to firmly position itself as a top performing bank and lay a firm foundation for sustainable growth and profitability.

He said GCB has maintained a disciplined approach to its evaluation of tradeoffs and makes choices that will sustain it in a competitive market environment.

Mr. Dornoo made these remarks when he presented the bank's 2014 financial results to shareholders at the recently-held AGM in Accra.

He stated that Profits have increased from GH¢18 million to GH¢395 million over five years, increasing the total valuation of the bank seven-fold from GH¢196million in 2010 to GH¢1.4billion as at close of 2014.

"We have also significantly improved operational efficiency, reflecting a reduction in headline cost income ratio from a high of 87% to 59% over the same period," Mr. Dornoo said.

Headline Operating Costs were up 58% to GH¢428million. This is a reflection of higher costs of business re-organisation to achieve the bank’s transformation plan.

Total Income went up 29% to GH¢731million (2013: GH¢317million), and this was attributable to the volume of growth across all business lines and the relatively stable net interest margins.

Over all, the bank delivered a Return on Equity (RoE) of 41% compared to the 49% declared in the year 2013. Return on Assets (RoA) stood at 7%, which is a repetition of the year 2013.

Earnings per share increased 23% to 106 Ghana pesewas (2013: 86 Ghana pesewas), resulting in further improvement in the bank’s internal valuation.

Even though the bank still has a lot to do in pursuit of its goals, the Managing Director is delighted with the focused execution of GCB’s strategic agenda and the results, pronouncing the future of the bank as bright.