Fidelity prepares for stock exchange

Shareholders of Fidelity Bank last month gave their board the go-ahead to list the bank on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) within the next five years.

In line with the objective, management of the bank indicated plans to list on the Ghana Stock Exchange between 2014 and 2016.

Edward Effah, Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, recently told journalists in Accra after a seminar organised by the bank that the listing will come off without any hitches.

According to him, the bank is already a public company since it complies with most of the regulations of a public company and provides a lot of data on its operations.

“We have more than 50 shareholders so we don’t see any additional pressure in listing. We’ve gone from a private company to a public company. We have an OTC market. We have already done most of the work.”

Rather than acquiring another bank, Mr Effah said his outfit was considering branch expansion as a strategy since Fidelity Bank “cannot see or find a suitable partner in the market.”

Also, he noted that Fidelity Bank could consider any partner that was suitable in future.

Fidelity Bank was issued with its universal banking license on June 28, 2006, making Fidelity Bank Ghana Limited, the 22nd bank to be licensed by the Bank of Ghana under the new Banking Act, 2004 (Act 673).

The bank is owned by Ghanaians and institutional investors including Africa Capital, SIC Life, SSNIT and also by its senior executives.

The bank was formerly Fidelity Discount House, the leading discount house in Ghana.

After operating profitably for eight years, the business environment attracted investors to the idea of establishing a bank.