Outlining the developments within the year which were centred around the silver jubilee celebrations of the Bank, Mr. Asante said, “2021 remains that year which marks our 25th milestone on our journey as a bank in Ghana. The various events we organised and the ways we all helped to make them successful and enjoyable bear testimony to our commitment to continue on this journey and to attain more achievements for our bank. Secondly, this year was a watershed in the operations of FBNBank in Ghana. It is the year within which we laid down the marker for our progress to the upper echelons of Ghana’s banking sector. This has been in terms of the strides we have made in the industry; the awareness and visibility we have created, the products we rolled out, the awards we won and the levels to which we have driven our various stakeholder engagement efforts.”

He added that “2021 has seen FBNBank Ghana maintain the most consistent trend in terms of staff engagement. For the past three years, we have worked at being a more close-knit family with greater understanding and an increased willingness to have each other’s back. Each year has offered an improvement, with 2021 giving a strong indication of how closely we are working together and how proud we are of our brand.”

“In a year that COVID-19 hit many businesses hard, God kept us going and kept us alive. We are grateful.”

The Thanksgiving Service, which was held at the forecourt of the Bank’s head office and was attended by over 300 staff, was preceded with prayer at the Ghana Police Mosque earlier in the day. The Bank made a donation of GH¢20,000 to the mosque towards the construction of a school for children. Officially seen as the event which draws the curtain on the 25th-anniversary celebrations, the service offered a good opportunity for management and staff of the Bank to look back at the developments within 2021 and draw vital lessons and inspiration for the new year ahead.

Delivering the exhortation at the FBNBank Carols and Thanksgiving Service, Presiding Bishop of the Victory Bible Church International, Rt. Rev. N. A. Tackie-Yarboi urged staff of the Bank to be thankful to God for His goodness and how far He has brought both the Bank and its Staff.

He urged the bankers to dwell on the positives in all of life’s circumstances despite the challenges, difficulties, twists and turns that come their way. While noting that there were some people without jobs notwithstanding their requisite qualifications, he tasked staff of the Bank to show gratitude for the existence of FBNBank as well as their jobs. He underscored the fact that since what we express thankfulness for multiplies in our lives, it was important that we remain grateful.

Bishop Tackie Yarboi stated that “I want you to know that giving thanks secures the blessing. And when you secure the blessing, you have to put your hand to work.” He asked that God would grant the Bank’s personnel wisdom to be productive, excel in the discharge of their duties, and embrace an entrepreneurial spirit as a way of multiplying the Bank’s profits.

Award-winning gospel musician, Joe Mettle and the Glorious Philharmonic Choir, were present to lead the staff in many songs of praise and worship to thank the Lord. FBNBank’s 25th-anniversary celebrations have seen the Bank engage all its key stakeholder groups through the platforms provided by a gamut of special events and activities since January 2021. These include the FBNBank@25 National Trade Forum, the various customer engagement events, the Gala Dinner, Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Week, the Business Forum on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area and the FBNBank@25 Golf Tournament. The impact of these activities on stakeholders have also been bolstered by developments undertaken by the Bank within the year to improve its business offering and stakeholder engagement like the acquisition of PCI DSS and ISO 27001-2013 certifications, the refurbishment and recommissioning of Tema Branch, the introduction of the FBNBank Visa Prepaid Card and the 2021 Staff Engagement activities. All these and several others have culminated in the recognition which the Bank has received, particularly in the form of the “Best Bank of the Year” and “Most Outstanding SME Bank of the Year” awards by the Chartered Institute of Credit Management Ghana and Ghana Business Standards Awards, respectively.