ADB invests to fend off cyber security risks

ADB Bank has assured customers of continuous investments in the bank to address all envisaged cyber security risks.

The digital transformation in the financial sector has come with its own cyber security risks and the bank said it has adopted a proactive approach to deal with these risks.

Many players in the financial services sector are hit on a daily basis as hackers try to use all means to break into their system to syphon huge sums of depositor’s funds.

At it’s annual general meeting, the Managing Director, Alhassan Yakubu-Tali, said the bank has received certification in ISO 27001 and embedded ISO systems and processes in what it does.

“As you are aware, we became the first bank to set up the security operations centre (SOC) which monitors our cyber assets to ensure we identify all vulnerabilities and resolve same,” he stated.

Again, he said the bank had introduced change control processes and information security in all its digital project management by ensuring that it identified all cyber risks in and out IT enabled business solutions before they went live.

Accordingly, he said “we will continue to ensure we dedicate time, efforts, the required people and other resources required to protect our cyber assets from any cyber-attacks so that our business is protected.”

The brand

On the bank’s brand, Mr Yakubu-Tali said ADB PLC continues to be a strong brand and remained the bank of choice when it comes to financing agribusiness and more.

“In July 20, 2023, the global Info Analytics – a renowned marketing and data-driven research entity reaffirmed our brand health position as being the second most popular banking brand in Ghana, right behind GCB bank. 

The report further reaffirmed the positive correlation between a strong brand and customer loyalty which indicated that our customers remained loyal to the ADB brand. 

Per our two year strategy. We have also put in place specific strategies to make ADB truly the people’s bank and the most attractive brand in the banking Industry.  

Financial performance 

ADB reversed its losses caused mainly by the government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) last year, to a profit position in the first half of the year.

The bank in its audited summary of financial statement for the first half of the year posted a profit after tax of GH¢53 million, setting it on a positive trajectory to high profitability at the close of the year.

The bank’s profit in the period under review is higher than the GH¢40 million it posted in the same period last year.

As a demonstration of its commitment to its customers, the bank advanced loans to the tune of GH¢4 billion within the period as against the GH¢2.7 billion its gave out during the same period last year.

Deposits which stood at GH¢4.7billion as of June last year, increased to GH¢ 7.1 billion in the first half.

However, shareholders’ funds dropped from GH¢978 million last year to GH¢711 million in the first half.

Navigating challenges

Mr Yakubu-Tali said ADB had a long history of managing successfully through economic and business challenges. 

He said the bank would continue to ensure it gets value for money for “our investments in personnel and general operations. 

“We have instituted performance management systems in our personnel. Thus, we are conscious of our cost to income ratio and the need to improve the income lines to take care of the costs.” 

Mr Yakubu-Tali said the strategies adopted by the bank are yielding the needed results “and our cost to income ratio has reduced to 77 per cent as at June 2023 compared to 86 per cent as at June 2022.”