CalBank has announced another quarter of significant, sustained growth across key performance metrics in line with the bank’s turnaround strategy.

The bank closed the third quarter 2024 with a clear, sustained positive trend in performance following the its sterling Half-Year 2024 results.

"Our Q3-2024 financials reflect an increase of 97.4% in Fees and Commissions income. The 24.7% decrease in net interest income was largely due to a deliberate slowdown in new loan expansion, given high interest rates. Consequently, Total Operating Income decreased by 9.8% compared to the prior year Q3-2023", it disclosed in a statement.

Recoveries

The muted headline revenue performance was countered by a significant recovery of impaired loans, amounting to GH¢712.5 million in the year 2024 to date.

These recoveries were principally from the Hospitality, Construction and Services sectors as a result of a sustained and unrelenting recovery strategy for impaired loans which was pursued via the courts as well as through liquidation of certain collaterals held.

Disciplined Cost Containment:

Operating expenses increased by 9.3% in Quarter 3, 2024, over the prior year, driven largely by general price increases in goods and services.

Staff costs were well contained, growing by 9.7% over the prior year. 

This was due to management’s sharpened focus on cost control in the light of the current economic and business conditions and local currency depreciation which contributed to rising costs of dollar denominated expenses

Profitability

Against this backdrop, CalBank reported a solid bottom-line performance of GH¢223.9 million in Profit-After-Tax for Q3-2024, an increase of 26.1% over the prior year and a 41.8% increase over the Half Year-2024 Profit-After-Tax.

Deposit Growth

Deposit growth through its strong retail franchise has been remarkable throughout 2024 resulting in a steady 26.5% increase in deposits from GH¢7.5 billion in 2023 to GH¢10.1 billion as of quarter 3, 2024.

This growth has been coupled with a dramatic shift in its deposit mix from Corporate to Individuals/SMEs.  As a result, Current and Savings accounts (CASA) now make up over 80% of deposits, mainly from individuals and SME’s, which was hitherto absent.  

Digital Penetration

The change in deposit mix arose from its strategic drive to optimise its digital channels, grow agent banking franchise and enhance collection platforms.

The deposit increase also underscored customer trust and confidence in CalBank’s secure and reliable banking platforms.

Outlook for Full Year 2024

The bank said its outlook is a clear focus remains on the disciplined execution of its new 5- year strategy, geared towards maximising value across our business. The strategic objective to rank amongst the top tier banks in Ghana remains unchanged.

"Our long-term retail strategy is focused on expanding our presence nationwide and in the short term, our focus is to enhance and solidify our digital footprint. To this end, in Q3-2024, we registered 996 new agents, bringing our total agent network to 1,886, spread across all 16 regions of Ghana. We will continue to expand this delivery channel through 2024/2025 and beyond in line with our retail strategy. Across all channels, our business activity levels have shown resilience, setting a positive tone for the last quarter of 2024. In the long-term, our key imperative is to become the leading bank for digital payments and innovation in the country", it explained.

"Our aggressive deposit drive strategy is yielding the desired results in shifting our deposit mix towards low-cost current and savings accounts and provides the foundation upon which we will continue to grow our deposits in 2024", it added.

"We are firmly committed to supporting businesses and individuals in key strategic sectors of the economy through our SME and Scheme loan lending initiatives", it concluded.

At the core of its strategy is the strengthening of resilience through robust risk management, which supports sustainable long-term growth and delivers strong financial returns while prioritizing prudent risk management and community support.

"Our Q3-2024 results highlight the fundamental strength of the bank and our ability to navigate challenges, as we recorded a profit of GH¢223.9 million", it mentioned.

The bank expressed its appreciation to the management and staff for their continuous hard work and tenacity during difficult times.  

It also applauded and showed special appreciation to the current board of directors and those who have recently completed their term of service, adding, "Together, we have turned the fortunes of the bank around towards growth".

The bank mentioned that it remains resilient, dedicated to overcoming hurdles and delivering sustainable growth and value for the benefit of investors, clients, and colleagues.”

Chairman Mr. Joseph Mensah also commented: “The turnaround of CalBank’s performance towards a positive trajectory has come about due to the ongoing restructuring efforts by management and the board. The fundamentals of the bank have been strengthened and the outlook for the future is   very bright. We are well-positioned to continue on our pathway to success.”