This was contained in the bank’s 2021 annual financial results published last Tuesday. According to the report, the performance was achieved notwithstanding the stressed business climate in the country in the year under review.

The bank’s cost-to-income ratio also improved from 53 per cent to 48 per cent over the same period.

Underpinning the bank’s performance were a strong asset quality, diverse revenue sources, and controlled credit losses and operating costs.

“These results were achieved despite a stressed business climate, and a high effective tax rate of 38 per cent,” the report said.

Good launchpad

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Stanbic Bank Ghana, Kwamina Asomaning, in his comments, said the strong performance last year was a good launchpad to make the bank more innovative in producing consistently positive customer experiences for its clients.

“Our customers and our franchise have demonstrated resilience, not just to weather the storm but also to be intentional about adapting to challenging circumstances.

“The path ahead is one where we, as a bank, commit to partnering with stakeholders in innovative ways which enable their aspirations to be met. Our own success is wholly contingent upon how well we do this,” he stated.

He said the bank would continuously measure its success against it, while staying true to its culture of doing the right business, the right way.

Adapting to changes

The CEO also shared his ambition for the future of the bank, drawing on the bank’s ability to adapt to changes and to innovate.

“My ambition is for Stanbic Bank to be a leader in innovation. In today’s economic and fiscal environment, it is only through leading in innovation that we will be nimble enough to face opportunities when they arise, and prepared enough to mitigate challenges as they occur.

“Being a leader in innovation will mean we can apply our creative talents to improve customer solutions, enhance business processes and develop our technologies,” he stated.

He said doing so would enable the bank to generate recurring and sustainable value for all stakeholders.

“Achieving this goal is fundamentally impossible without deep cross-functional collaboration, and a culture which promotes agility, continuous improvement and excellence. Therefore, we will focus our efforts and our resources on precisely these things.

“In 2022, we will ramp up our innovation investments and intensify our digital transformation activities such that we convert our long-held ambitions into tangible outcomes,” he stated.