New Bank For Country

Source: The Analyst

Liberia is reeling in poverty today because its resources are undercapitalized, or worst, because its resources were pillaged in the last 50 years by rogue investments since the introduction of government’s caution in the wind “Open Door Policy”. Clear cut. Some say though that there is more – that corruption and the poor banking system had undermined domestic investment, leading to slow economic growth rate and citizens’ general despair. But all that is on the way out and financial progress is stepping in – that is if the words of the managing director of Liberia’s newest commercial bank, the Guaranty Trust Bank-Liberia (GTBANK-Liberia), and the governor of the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL) are any guarantors. The Analyst Staff Writer, reports.

The Nigeria-based Guaranty Trust Bank, Inc. has opened a subsidiary branch in Liberia with an initial investment capital of US $10.0 million.

Observers say the initial investment capital represents the highest initial equity in recent Liberian banking history.

The new bank, Guaranty Trust Bank-Liberia (GTBANK-Liberia), will focus on commercial banking and investment backed by new banking technology, e-products, and modernized customer care and service.

GTBANK-Liberia Managing Director, Dan Orogun, made these disclosures yesterday when he delivered an opening statement at the dedicatory ceremony at the bank’s edifice in Via Town, Monrovia.

The ceremony was attended by an array of government officials including legislators and banking and finance executives.

The GTBank-Liberia boss praised the Sirleaf Administration and the Liberia people in general for the “selfless sacrifice” they made in ensuring peace and stability in postwar Liberia.

He said it was the selfless sacrifice of the government and people of Liberia that has given the authorities of GTBank-Liberia the platform to invest in the developmental process of rebuilding Liberia.

According to him, GTBank-Liberia was dedicated to investing in the rebuilding of Liberia “by providing financial services and products, which are not only intended to change the face of banking in Liberia but to add value to the Liberian people”.

He said Liberia’s outstanding potentials for playing key roles in the economic viability of the ECOWAS subregion necessitated the decision of the authorities of GTBank Plc to make Liberia part of its regional family.

“Our bank decided to make Liberia a part of our family because we believe that we can immensely contribute to the development of this great nation,” he added.

He said it was for these two reasons that GTBank’s products and services were customized to meet the needs of the Liberian people.

“Specifically, we shall be introducing our electronic products to the public within the next one month with the objective of making banking more convenient for our customers,” he said, describing GTBank as “a truly African bank with international reputation and global capabilities”.

The GTBank-Liberia boss said the bank’s presence and activities in Liberia would herald what he called “a rise in trade and investment opportunities, as its Liberian subsidiary will enjoy the leverage of the Guaranty Trust Group’s enviable heritage and global connections”.

Also making during remarks during the dedicatory ceremony yesterday, Central
Bank of Liberia (CBL) Governor J. Mills Jones said the dedication of GTBank-Liberia brought to eight the number of commercial banks currently operating in postwar Liberia.

With the number to rise by one in coming months, he said, the initial obstacle to improved banking activities in Liberia was slowing becoming a thing of the past.

The obstacle, he said, was related to the inability of some investors to meet the minimum requirement of US $2.0 for opening and operating a commercial bank in Liberia.

Governor Jones then thanked GTBank-Liberia and its parent company in Lagos, Nigeria, for making a conscious decision to help build the Liberian economy through the banking industry.

“I end my remarks my saying that the commencement of operations in Liberia may be a small step for Guaranty Trust, but with the initial capitalization of US$10 million — a target that we have set of the industry by end 2010— this represents a giant step for the banking industry in Liberia,” the CBL boss said.

Governor Jones said with over 18 years of banking experience demonstrated by the winning of several awards for strong financial performance, excellent customer service delivery, and management efficiency, welcoming GTBank-Liberia to Liberia’s banking system was in the expectation that this tradition of excellence would continue in Liberia.

“So far, the word reaching us is that the management team of Guaranty Trust Liberia is off to a good start,” he said.

Affirming and adding weight to Director Orogun’s opening statement, GTBank-Liberia Board Chairman and Managing Director of GTBank Plc, Tayo Aderinokun, thanked the Liberian government for the opportunity accorded GTBank Plc to invest in Liberia.

“Guaranty Trust Bank is a name that has been synonymous with excellence, integrity, professionalism and exceptional service delivery since we opened for business in Lagos, Nigeria in 1990,” he said.

He said it should therefore be expected that yesterday’s commissioning of the newest subsidiary in Liberia ensures that GTBank Plc has an established business presence in all Anglophone West African countries – Nigeria, Ghana, The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

“Guaranty Trust Bank (Liberia) Limited is a partnership with the Liberian people to ensure the growth of individual businesses and the overall development of the economy. Liberia, Africa’s oldest independent country is filled with renewed vigor to rebuild the country under a new democracy and we are throwing our weight behind these laudable reconstruction efforts, and hope to increase investor and business confidence in her banking sector, as we have continually done in our various local and international operating environments,” the subsidiary board chairman said.

That GTBank-Liberia will enable the growth of individual businesses in Liberia, he said, was further amplified by the fact that 50 out of the Bank’s 54 employees were of Liberian origin.

“Guaranty Trust Bank Liberia is your company. Going forward, it will provide the required support, technical knowledge and access to funds to ensure Liberians have a chance for a brighter tomorrow. It will partner with the Government on value adding projects and avail Liberians with the Guaranty Trust Bank style of service for which we are well known,” he said in closing.

The Guaranty Trust Bank Liberia Limited was incorporated in June 2007. The bank was issued a provisional license on the 2nd of July 2008 and the final operational license on the 6th of March 2009 by the Central Bank of Liberia.

The bank commenced operations on March 12, 2009 from its business office in Clara Town.

According to the company’s expansion plan, two additional business offices are expected to be opened in Sinker and Paynesville this year with additional plan to commence construction of the Head Office on the former Walker Field on Broad Street.

There are also plans to open branches in Ganta in Nimba County and Buchanan in Grand Bassa County.

There were no timetables attached to these plans, which observers say would concretize GTBank-Liberia’s desire to become a central force in the modernization of Liberia’s banking industry.

GTBank-Liberia started operations in Liberia with a staff strength of 55 of which only 4 Nigerians, the rest are Liberians.