OmniBank Ghana Limited ("OmniBank”) and BSIC Ghana Limited, trading as Sahel Sahara Bank ("BSIC”) are pleased to announce that in a letter dated 14th August 2018 the Central Bank informed the two banks as follows:
“The Bank of Ghana (BOG) has "no objection" for merger talks between BSIC Bank (Ghana) Ltd. and OmniBank Ghana Ltd. to commence. You are, however, to note that the final approval of a merger will only be considered after all the necessary documentation has been submitted for review.”
By this arrangement, the banks have since signed a Heads of Terms (“Memorandum of Understanding”) to govern their intention to merge and commenced the process to meet all requirements for final BOG approval.
In view of this, we are grateful to the Bank of Ghana, our cherished customers and all other stakeholders for their support and cooperation. We are committed to supporting the Bank of Ghana in its quest to ensure stability, confidence and growth in the banking sector.
We also wish to assure our customers and the investing public that this merger when finally completed, will position our Bank as a major player in the banking industry to support private sector growth and Ghana’s development agenda.
Thank you.
Dated: Monday, 15th September 2018 2
Please contact the persons below for further information
The shareholders, Directors and Management of the two Banks took a decision to merge due to, among others, the following reasons:
1. The two Banks are of similar balance sheet sizes and similar business models, and would like to continue serving the SME market due to the huge potential and impact on the economy of Ghana. The merger will create a bigger Bank with the capacity to manage the opportunities and risks thereof.
2. The combined entity will have 46 branches, spread across the country to improve service delivery to our over 150,000 customers.
3. The two banks have maintained and published unqualified audited financial statements as required by the Bank of Ghana, and have Capital Adequacy Ratios (CAR) above the BOG’s minimum requirement of 10%.
4. The two Banks have never received liquidity support from the central Bank.
5. In support of the merger, existing and potential shareholders have shown commitment to increase capital to fill the shortfall in the new Minimum Capital Requirement of GHS400 million, before the 31st December 2018 deadline. The Banks have also agreed to ensure that there will be no job losses for the permanent staff due to the merger.
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