GCB Bank Limited, after being voted the Best Bank in Ghana for Anti-Money Laundering Compliance, has now emerged as Africa’s Best Bank in Compliance, as announced by the Association for Certified Compliance Professionals in Africa (ACCPA).
GCB was rated the best among five banks across the African Continent namely FNB (South Africa), Standard Chartered Bank (Kenya), BANGE (Equatorial Guinea) and BAI (Angola).
The announcement was made at the final day of the ACCPA Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa at the weekend.
ACCPA is a continental network of experienced and certified Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing professionals working in Africa.
The organisation currently has more than 3,000 members in 46 countries with a pool of seasoned professionals in the Compliance and Risk Management landscape.
The conference brought together members of the Association, bankers, and risk and financial analysts across the African Continent to dialogue on the theme: “Improving Risk and Compliance Standards in Africa.”
The shortlisted banks were rated based on several criteria including the independence of its compliance function, domestic Know Your Customer (KYC), the credibility of data, standardised procedures and global sanction screening.
Other standards include effectiveness of transaction monitoring, internal controls, professional knowledge and skills, internal and external compliance, good corporate governance, top management support, regular training and auditing.
The award was received by the Head of Compliance, Mr Abudulai Osman, who said GCB’s investments in technical and financial resources into the implementation of compliance, risk programme and the collaboration with reputable local and international institutions earned it the award.
Accompanying him were Mr Emmanuel Kojo Kwarteng, the Deputy Head of Corporate Affairs, Mr Martin Kwadwo Asante, Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Reporting Officer, and Ms Diana Konadu Opoku, Compliance Officer of the Bank.
Mr Osman acknowledged the commitment of the GCB Board and Management towards the strict adherence to Corporate Governance Rules and for the unalloyed support towards the Compliance Department to ensure that GCB maintained the highest standards on all fronts.
He said the GCB Bank consistently scanned the global environment, partnered with reputable local and international organisations and invested in compliance and risk management programmes to ensure the Bank continued to develop proactive compliance strategies.
Mr Ernest Honya, the President and Chairman of ACCPA, who presented the award, praised the GCB Bank for its stellar performances over the years.
He called on Regulators and Management of financial institutions in Africa to institute and support compliance policies to avoid the collapse of such institutions.
Earlier in the week, the GCB Bank was voted the Best Bank in Ghana in Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Compliance in the country-based category of anti-money laundering compliance measures.
It was the first time that Ghanaian banks have been assessed on the AML Compliance measures by ACCPA and GCB emerged as the maiden winner.
In 2018, GCB was awarded the Most Compliance Focused Bank in Africa due to the incorporation and implementation of stringent policies, procedures and solutions that enable the Bank to consistently meet the regulator’s requirements as well as contribute to the global fight against financial crime.
