By Francis Ntow
Accra, May 08, GNA – Contrary to rumours in the media, Mr Hakim Ouzzani, Managing Director, Societe Generale Ghana, says, the French bank has not announced any plans of exiting the country.
He explained that though its mother French company, Societe Generale, was implementing some global reforms in its business offerings to make it more efficient, there had not been any decision on exiting the Ghanaian market.
“In the context of this strategy of the Group and following decisions taken on some activities over the world, in France, Africa, and elsewhere, some rumours have indeed taken root regarding SG Ghana,” he said.
“It’s important to mention to all our stakeholders and stakeholders that the news item being circulated in the media was not issued by the Group nor by SG Bank. We don’t want to comment further.” Mr Ouzzani added.
He said this at the 44th Annual General Meeting of the bank, held concurrently in-person in Accra and virtually, on Wednesday, May 8.
He stated that despite the economic challenges and its attendant impact on the banking sector, SG Ghana recorded a 290 per cent growth over that of 2022, with a GHS424.8 million profit after tax in 2023.
Combined with the efficient management of cost and the decline in net cost of risk on sovereign facilities, the return on equity for the year consequently soared to 28 per cent from the 10 per cent presented in 2022,” he said.
On the impact of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) in 2023, the MD noted that the government’s fiscal measure had minimal impact on its profitability.
He added that the DDEP posed an indirect third-party risk (the inability of clients to repay loans due to the investment of company funds in government securities.
Mr Ouzzani acknowledged that high utility tariffs eroded purchasing power due to rates of high inflation and currency depreciation, high-interest rates, made the cost of borrowing “very high” in 2023.
While lauding the profitability of the bank, some shareholders who spoke with the Ghana News Agency after the AGM called for clarity and definite decision from the bank about their exit from the country.
“The performance of the bank gives us a lot of confidence because the bank is growing from strength to strength. That’s why we’re saying that what came as a rumour that they’re leaving Ghana is a source of concern to us,” said, Mr Samson Ashong, a shareholder.
“So, even if it’s true that they’re leaving, they should explain to us why they’re going, when and how they’re going to deal with the shareholders. We want more assurance that they’ll remain here,” he said.
Mr Sas Goerge, president of the Association of Shareholders on the Ghana Stock Market, noted that the exit of the bank would not be a new thing because similar occurrences had happened in the country in the past.
He noted that the responses from the bank at the AGM signalled that its decision of the bank to exit Ghana “is not open yet,” attributing it to secrecy conditions of banks.
He, therefore, called on the bank to provide timely information to stakeholders and shareholders to douse the rumours.
GNA