Société Générale Ghana has demonstrated its ability as a bank to deliver strong, consistent performance over the years. A review of the bank’s performance revealed that SG Ghana maintained robust, sustainable growth in 2022 despite operating within a challenging economic climate.
Taking the stage at Ghana Stock Exchange’s ‘Facts Behind the Figures’ event held at Cedi House on Tuesday 4th July 2023, the bank’s Managing Director, Mr. Hakim Ouzzani, provided invaluable insights into the institution’s strong performance.
Mr. Ouzzani explained that Société Générale Ghana’s operating income grew substantially from GH¢636million to GH¢802million, an increase of 26%. He also noted that operating expenses for the bank also grew slightly from GH¢321million to GH¢348million.
This makes SG Ghana one of the few banks that made profit in 2022, closing the year with a profit after tax of GH¢109million.
This milestone was achieved due to the bank’s strong business principles and application of world-class risk managing mechanisms designed to protect its customers, particularly Ghanaian customers.
Elaborating further, Mr. Ouzzani stated that the bank holds doing business in Africa in high esteem. With over 100 years of service and long-term investment in Africa under its belt, the Société Générale Group – one of leading financial service groups in the world – is grateful for the opportunity to contribute in the positive transformation of economies and communities across the continent. Additionally, the bank’s aim is not simply to make profits but also be a catalyst and facilitator of tangible economic change in Ghana.
Mr. Ouzzani also highlighted that bank’s unique innovations that were launched to support and propel SMEs and start-ups. These include the SG Home of Business and Innov8 hub, as well as products such finance leasing and factoring which provide resources for business to grow exponentially.
Indeed, the bank has proven its unwavering dedication to facilitating and galvanising private sector growth with a deposit to loan ratio of over 80%. SMEs and businesses make up a large percentage of the economic backbone of Ghanaian livelihoods, and Societe Generale Ghana’s support for this sector has grown by approximately 105% – increasing from GH¢254million in 2020 to GH¢518million by the end of 2022.
The managing director also shone light on the bank’s commitment to its Sustainability Agenda, which was launched last month together with several partners to demonstrate the organisation’s commitment to environmentally friendly and responsible business practices. Mr. Ouzzani reiterated the call for all stakeholders to get onboard and together build a better and sustainable future through proper and structured environmental stewardship.
Following Mr. Ouzzani, Deputy Managing Directo-Support, Mr. Kwame Abbey, outlined the bank’s Internal Controls and Risk Management; both of which form part of key fundamentals and reasons for SG Ghana’s stellar performance and industry-low Non-Performing Loans (NPL) ratio.
Mr. Abbey stated that the bank has three main lines of defense to safeguard the interest of its shareholders and protect business. These are: the bank’s Business Teams, the first point of contact for customer engagement; the Compliance and Risk Team which form the second line of defence; and the Audit and Inspections Teams as the final line of defence.
This three-layered approach and the bank’s processes and procedures form the basis of its resilience and strong financial performance.
The event had an extended session after the bank’s presentation, wherein participants made up of licenced institutions and dealers like Pension Trustees, Custodians, Registrars, the Media and Academia engaged the bank on its results and outlook for 2023.
Bringing the event to a close, Ms. Abena Amoah, Managing Director-Ghana Stock Exchange, thanked the bank for participating in the event and encouraged other organisations to continue participating. Ms. Amoah encouraged investors to take a cue from the bank’s very strong performance and invest in the Ghanaian market.
Celebrating their achievement, while marking 20 years of operating in Ghana, the bank unveilled its 20th anniversary logo at the event – reminding all Ghanaians that, with SG Ghana, the future is you.
