Sierra Leone News: Standard Chartered Bank Records Solid Growth
By Stephen V. Lansana
The chairman of the Board of Directors of Standard Chartered Bank Sierra Leone, Herbert M’cleod, has said that the Bank recorded a solid balance sheet growth with increase in customer deposits of 49 percent in 2016.
He made this statement on Friday August 25, 2017 while making his opening remarks at the Bank’s 46th Annual General Meeting of shareholders at the Atlantic Hall, National Stadium Hostel in Freetown.
He said loans to customers almost doubled in the year (increasing from Le40billion to Le76Billion) a demonstration of the crucial role the Bank is playing in driving private sector lending.
“bank maintained a very liquid position and was highly capitalized with a capital adequacy ratio of 34.7 percent, which is above the regulatory limit of 15 percent,” he maintained.
He pointed out that deliberate actions taken by management resulted in this level of balance sheet growth that was able to absorb market volatility. “Despite a drop in foreign exchange revenue, the Bank was able to sustain revenue momentum which saw a slight year-on-year growth in total revenue from Le 74.8 billion in 2015 to Le 75.0billion in 2016 largely due to growth in income from interest earning assets,” Mr M’cleod said.
He noted that net interest income increased by a whopping 96.8 percent to Le37.6 billion driven mainly by the significant growth in loans and advances and also increased investment in treasury bills. “Profit was flat at Le 17.1billion in 2016,” he said.
A dividend of Le 30 cents per share was proposed by the board and approved by shareholders.
In his statement, the Chief Executive Officer, Idrissa Kamara, pointed out that the level of progress made in 2016 especially around building a resilient and robust balance and creating efficiencies around its service delivery, client experience, risk and government puts the Bank on a solid footing to drive superior financial performance going forward. “
He said the Bank is able to leverage its strong brand and parental support to deliver unparalleled support and solution delivery to its clients and shareholders. “We continue to reaffirm our commitment and brand promise ‘Here for Good’ and reinforced support to the broader Sierra Leone economy.
Shareholders were also informed that after serving for six years on the Board, Mrs Blanche Gooding retired from the Board in December 2016. The Chairman extended sincere gratitude to Blanche for her outstanding and diligent service to the Board and wished her the very best in all her future endeavours.
Madam Elisabeth Massalay’s appointment was also ratified also by the shareholders as a replacement.