Alex Kwasi Awuah has been appointed Managing Director of ARB Apex Bank Plc. The appointment followed a recommendation from the bank’s Board of Directors after a competitive and thorough interview and a no-objection letter issued by the Bank of Ghana (BoG).
The Managing Director’s role of the ‘mini’ central bank of the 145 Rural and Community Banks (RCBs) in the country became vacant in July 2021, upon the retirement of former Managing Director Kojo Mattah, who served a four-year tenure and attained the statutory retirement age of 60 years in July 2021.
Following retirement of the former Managing Director, Awuah was appointed Acting Managing Director on July 26, 2021 – a position he held until his confirmation as substantive Managing Director of the Bank. Prior to that, he served as Deputy Managing Director of the bank from June 2015.
The Chartered Banker with vast experience covering central banking, universal banking and rural banking begins his four-year mandate on January 1, 2022.
The astute banker began his banking career in 1996 at the defunct Rural Finance Inspection Department of the BoG, and later moved to the Banking Supervision Department as an Examiner until March 2005 when he joined the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB).
He worked in various capacities at ADB; first as an Auditor in the Internal Audit and Assurance Department, then a Manager in the Research and Planning Department and the Strategic Policy Coordinating Unit. He headed the Budgets, Planning and Strategy Unit at the Finance and Planning Department of the bank before moving to ARB Apex Bank Plc in November 2013 as Head of the Internal Control Department.
In that capacity, he was responsible for the audit of departments and branches of the bank. He was also in charge of inspecting the RCBs in Ghana as a complementary service to the Bank of Ghana’s regulatory role.
Mr. Awuah is expected to bring his 25 years’ of experience to bear in repositioning the RCBs sub-sector of the country at a critical time, when the 145 RCBs are operating from more than 800 branches and agencies across the country and expected to implement a new Corporate Governance Directive issued by the BoG from the first quarter of 2022.
Education
Mr. Alex Awuah is a Chartered Banker and holds an Executive Master of Business Administration (Finance option) as well as a Bachelor of Science in Administration (Banking and Finance option) from the University of Ghana Business School. He has also passed the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, UK examinations, up to the professional level.
Mr. Awuah is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers-Ghana and serves on the Executive Committee of the Institute, having previously served as a Council Member. He is also a former member of the Boards of Konrad Adenauer Memorial Credit Union (KAMCCU) at the Credit Unions Head Office, Accra, and Suma Rural Bank, Suma Ahenkro. He is a former Director of Finance for the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Ascension Congregation – North Legon.
