Following Union Savings and Loans award for 2014 Best SME Finance Company in Ghana, the Global Banking & Finance Review interviewed the managing director of the company to share more light on their success story.
The Global Banking & Finance Review is a leading brand name in the world of finance and banking. It is created to reward all companies of all sizes that are prominent in particular areas of expertise and excellent within the global financial community.
Mr. Philip Oti- Mensah, who is the MD for Union Savings and Loans, was in London to pick up the award together with Kwasi Nimako, Executive Head of Finance.
Speaking after the presentation, Mr. Oti- Mensah highlighted how Union had to significantly change their business philosophy in order to achieve the enviable feat they are enjoying.
He revealed that as at 2012, they used to be a micro banking institution but had to later change their business strategy and focus on SMEs.
Following this move, Mr. Oti- Mensah claims both their loan portfolio and deposits has considerably grown more than twenty five (25) and thirty (30) times respectively.
The MD further revealed that the bank also decided to move into the SME market because they realized that more entrepreneurs were involved in that sector; and used their knowledge gained, to add value to raw materials for business. He made it clear that focusing on the SME market has contributed to the growth of Ghana’s economy.
He noted that SMEs contribute more than 50% of Ghana’s GDP. “In terms of the number of business registered, the SMEs contribute more than 90%.
They employ more than 80% of the workforce and Union is stabilizing the economy by focusing on this target group”, he said.
Touching on the challenges of the SME sector, Mr. Oti-Mensah noted that lack of management capacity was major factor. He explained that the above challenge has made most SMEs fail to manage their businesses well. Aside this challenge, lack of networking is also a factor.
Despite the challenges, Mr. Oti-Mensah revealed that Union’s introduction of the SME clinic has come to solve capacity problems.
In his concluding remarks, the MD lauded staff members of Union Savings and Loans for their excellent contributions. According to Mr. Oti-Mensah, 60% of the staff members were picked from universities and are trained by the company to possess intellectual capacity to handle the business market.
Source: Chris Joe Quaicoe/ Email: [email protected]
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