Weto Rural Bank raises profits

Kpeve (V/R), Sept. 30, GNA - The Weto Rural Bank in the South Dayi District of the Volta Region made a net profit of 284 million cedis in 2006 as against 232 million cedis in 2005. Mr David Kludje, Board Chairman, announced this at the Bank's 21st Annual General Meeting at Kpeve on Saturday. He said total assets increased by 16 percent from 10 billion cedis in 2005 to 11.6 billion in 2006, adding that investment in Treasury Bills increased from 5.9 billion cedis to 6.3 billion cedis representing an increase of six percent.

Mr Kludje said the bank made a remarkable growth of 45 percent on recorded deposits, from six billion in 2005 to 8.7 billion cedis in 2006.

"The Board has recommended a total dividend of 105 million cedis as against 104 million in 2005 to reflect the hard work done," he remarked. He, however, urged shareholders to re-invest their dividend in the bank's operations to strengthen its capital base. The Board Chairman pointed out that the banking scene had become relatively competitive with the licensing of several "deep pocket" foreign banks.

He urged the management of the bank to improve customer service and introduce innovative products to enable it to firmly hold the ground. In a speech read on his behalf Mr Emmanuel K Kwapong, Managing Director of ARB APEX BANK, commended the bank for its achievements and urged the staff to work hard and mobilize more resources. He appealed to shareholders and people in the area to acquire more shares in order to strengthen the capital base of the bank, to serve as a cushion against possible losses in future. Mr Kwapong announced that the Apex Bank had contracted a consultant to clean share registers of rural and community banks in the country adding that the Bank was organizing training programmes for four staff each of rural banks for the upkeep and maintenance of the registers. The Managing Director said all head offices and agencies of the Bank are to be computerized within three years under the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) programme. He said the MCA would also provide funds to install a Wide Area Network (WAN) to connect all rural banks to the Apex Bank and the Bank of Ghana.