The United Kingdom�s financial services regulator, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), has given the stamp of approval to Standard Chartered Bank Ghana�s operations in that country.
The approval follows an audit conducted by the FSA earlier this year on the operations of the bank to assess how much it is aligned with the processes of its Group, which is headquartered in UK.
This is the first time a subsidiary of a UK-based multinational in Ghana has been audited by the FSA. Being an international Bank with headquarters in the UK, its principal chief regulator is the FSA and occasionally it conducts country audits of the banks under their supervision including their outlets across the world.
Standard Chartered PLC has operated for over 150 years in some of the world�s most dynamic markets, and earns around 90 percent of its income and profits in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
Mr. Harry Dankyi, Head of Audit, Ghana and West Africa, told the B&FT in an interview that the audit took into consideration how the Group�s standards in terms of governance process, strategy, and risk policy procedures are being adhered to by its subsidiary in Ghana.
�The Group is trusted for upholding high standards of corporate governance among others, and the FSA was interested in finding out whether we in Ghana are complying with these standards.
�They wanted to ensure that there is financial stability, market confidence, and check how well are our customers catered for; and, also, they assessed how strong our internal controls are to prevent financial crime. They assessed our risk, and compliance processes and realised that anti-money laundering is not compromised at all. They also saw that the bank is well-capitalised.�
Mr. Dankyi said the FSA spent three days interviewing the executive team of the bank and some senior officials of Bank of Ghana in order to get the necessary feedback.
He said the successful audit of the bank has clearly shown that Standard Chartered Bank Ghana is a bank with strong compliance and risks standards.
�It shows how transparent we are in our operations. It means we can also provide thought-leadership whenever any company is to be audited by the FSA in future.
�Another good thing about this audit is that it is a plus when it comes to enhancing shareholder value, and it also adds to our reputation.�
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