The Atwima Rural Bank made a profit of GH¢148,797 in 2021, as against a loss of GH¢2,097,740 in the year 2020, the Board Chairman of the Bank, Mr. Eric Appiah, has disclosed at the 28th Annual General Meeting.
He said in spite of the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bank navigated through uncharted waters and moved from a loss position in 2020, to a profitable position in 2021 through the strategic leadership of the Board and management.
Chairman Appiah gave the assurance that the Bank would continue to sustain liquidity and profitability to give good returns to its shareholders. The Board Chairman explained that the significant growth in loans and advances was a result of investment in less risky loans such as Controller and Accountant General Department (CAGD) loans to compensate for the huge previous non- performing loans.
He underscored that, the Bank made an important decision in respect of investment in Government of Ghana Treasury Bills and Bonds, and would increase such risk-free investments in the future to ensure sustainable liquidity and profitability.
Mr. Eric Appiah indicated that, the marginal growth in share capital meant that owners and prospective owners and shareholders should increase their investments in shares of the bank to enjoy profit distribution as dividend and share value, and entreated everyone to buy more shares to increase the share capital of the Bank.
On the outlook of the Bank, the Chairman stressed that, the management performance review revealed a profit before tax of about GH¢841,000 as at August 2022, which, he said, was a significant performance, and that the Board and management would ensure sustained operational efficiency to end the year, so as to give value to shareholders.
He said digital leadership skills were becoming critical, and that companies with the most digitally capable leaders, financially outperform the average by 50%, and for that matter, no matter what business function one works, the research underpins the indispensability of optimal corporate performance without digital technology.
Mr. Appiah said the Board and management would, therefore, make significant investment in digital technology to deliver convenient banking services to existing and prospective customers to serve them in the comfort of their homes, offices, market places, and everywhere by providing them with mobile banking and/or online banking.
