Reduce corporate tax rate for Rural and Community Banks - BoG urged

The ARB Apex Bank (RCBs) has urged the Bank of Gha­na to consider reducing the corporate tax rate for Rural and Community Banks (RCBs) from the current 25 percent to a max­imum of 15 percent.

Dr. Anthony Kwesi Aubynn, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bank, said such a reduction would alleviate the tax burdens faced by RCBs, thereby enabling them to more effectively fulfil their primary objective of enhancing financial inclusion within the rural sector.

The Chairman noted that the rural banking sector had mirrored the growth patterns of the broader banking industry, achieving a remarkable 122.4 percent increase in profit before tax, rising from GH¢164.0 million in December 2022 to GH¢364.8 million in December 2023.

Speaking at the Bank’s 22nd annual general meeting held here, he said growth in total assets of the Bank, stood at 30.1 percent year-on-year from GH¢8.4 billion at the end of December 2022 to GH¢11.0 billion as of December 2023, while deposits also rose by 31.1 percent from GH7¢.4 billion in December 2022 to GH¢9.7 billion.

Additionally, he said deposits surged by 31.1 percent, from GH¢7.4 billion in December 2022 to GH¢9.7 billion, while loans and advances grew by 26.9 percent, from GH¢2.6 billion to GH¢3.3 billion.

Regarding to the Bank’s performance in 2023, which was marked by macroeconomic un­certainties and elevated inflation affecting financial outcomes, he stated that the Bank managed to achieve another set of robust financial results, despite its in­volvement in the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).

Furthermore, he underscored that total assets experienced a substantial growth of 20.4 percent, rising from GH¢1.03 billion in 2022 to GH¢1.24 billion in 2023, primarily driven by a signif­icant increase in deposits of 19.6 percent, from GH¢1.01 billion in 2022 to GH¢1.22 billion in 2023.

Dr. Aubynn also mentioned that the Bank’s investments, which were impacted by the DDEP, still saw an increase of 17.9 percent, growing from GH¢432.4 million in 2022 to GH¢510.1 million in 2023.