Yaa Asantewaa Rural Bank Clears Air …Over False Media Reports

THE MANAGEMENT of Yaa Asantewaa Rural Bank Ltd has vehemently denied reports that it had opened a branch in a container at the Race Course Market in Kumasi.

According to officials of the bank, they had since their inception in 2010, complied fully with Bank of Ghana (BOG) regulations, and would never operate in a container.

Speaking to the media, the General Manager (GM) of the bank, Michael Kwabena Afriyie, said media reports that the bank is violating BOG rules are palpably false.

Bank’s Explanation 

He explained that a group of petty traders, who are eager to get their own stores at the newly built Kejetia/Central Market project, approached his bank for support, during which it was agreed that the traders would make a daily financial contribution to the bank to help them acquire their own stores.

Mr. Afriyie said to lessen the burden of the traders, who were to travel to the bank daily for the payment, a registration and collection point was opened for them at Race Course.

According to him, the bank was therefore surprised that some people had reported that the bank was violating BOG regulations by operating in a container.

“The Race Course container is not a branch of Yaa Asantewaa Rural Bank. It is just a registration and collection center for the petty traders.

“It is not our branch and so we don’t keep any money there. After payments are made by the traders, a waiting vehicle of the bank takes the money to our headquarters.

“What we are doing at Race Course is similar to what all other banks in the country do when they collect school fees at the various school campuses”, he stressed.

Assurance 

He assured the public that such false media reportages would not let the bank lose its focus and vision of supporting small scale businesses and petty traders.

“The focus of our bank is to make life easy for the ordinary Ghanaian and that is what we are committed to doing all the time. We are focused and determined.

“As a rural bank, we will continue to work and roll out policies that would improve the lives of the citizenry in support of government policy”, he stated.

Social Responsibilities 

Mr. Afriyie said Yaa Asantewaa Rural Bank had played its role to improve health, education and other pressing needs of people in their operational areas so far.

He said the bank also supported the traders at Race Course Market to build their sheds, adding “we shall continue to do more for them”.

Some media outlets recently published a report that the bank was operating in a metal container at the Race Course Market, but management debunked the story.

 

FROM Akwasi Boakye, Kumasi