GSE's New Gambian Member

The Exchange Council of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) has approved an application filed by Databank Brokerage Ltd for Trust Bank Limited (TBL) of Gambia to be listed on the GSE.

The listing which would take place this Friday at the trading floor of the GSE is the first ever ECOWAS cross-border listing and is expected to be witnessed by the President, Mr. J.A Kufuor and other government officials and personalities in the banking sector from the Gambia and Ghana. The bosses of the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the Regional Bourse in Abidjan are expected to attend. The Managing Director of Databank Ghana, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta yesterday briefed newsmen on the listing. He said the rationale behind the listing is to build liquidity for shareholders, better share pricing and to raise capital easily.

He said TBL of Gambia has about 30 million shares and since going public in 1999 "dividends have been paid consistently".

He said a Databank research study of the bank indicates that TBL has delivered robust profits, cash flows and strong balance sheet numbers in the past three years and "indicators suggest the bank will maintain its blue chip position in the Gambian banking industry."

On the achievements of TBL, he said last year the bank bagged a net profit margin of 43%, which was the highest in the Gambian banking industry. He said the net profit and revenue growth according to the study topped an average of 69% and 38% respectively in the past three years.

He said TBL is an attractive venture for Ghanaian investors because of the perennial depreciation of the cedi against the dalasi (currency of Gambia) which potentially could generate additional income returns.

TBL is the second largest bank in the Gambia with a 27% share. It was privatised through a public offer in July, 99.