The banking industry report 2023 has indicated that four banks have remained in the top 4 biggest banks by total assets for the last three years, and thus named Ecobank Ghana as the biggest bank in Ghana by total assets with GH₵25.77 billion in total assets as at December 2022.
According to the report, the other three biggest banks are GCB Bank, which came in the second position with GH₵21.35 billion, Stanbic Bank with GH₵18.60 billion and Absa with GHS17.10 billion, in that order.
All banks saw an increase in growth of total assets in 2022 in line with the general performance of the industry. The ranking of banks in Ghana based on total assets as of December 2022 generally reveals a mix of indigenous and non-indigenous banks dominating the top positions, demonstrating the strength and expansion of the Ghanaian banking sector.
Profits/Losses Before Tax
The report noted that Banks like Ecobank, GCB Bank, and Stanbic Bank consistently ranked in the top ten in previous years but faced larger losses in 2022 due to factors like the Domestic Debt Exchange Program (DDEP).
Ecobank Ghana, for example, dropped to 9th place due to increased net impairment losses on financial assets. Similar patterns were observed in other banks such as Cal Bank and Consolidated Bank. These losses highlight the impact of bad loans and investments on banks’ financial performance.
GT Bank was the most profitable in absolute terms, followed by Société Générale Ghana Limited and FBN with profits of GH₵191m, GH₵168m and GH₵102m profits before tax respectively.
Share of Industry Deposits
The report reports analysis provided insights into the market share of each bank. Non-indigenous banks like Ecobank, Absa, Standard Chartered, Access Bank, and Zenith Bank dominated the top positions, indicating their dominance in the deposit market.
However, indigenous banks like GCB Bank, Fidelity Bank, Consolidated Bank, and Cal Bank also secured spots in the top ten. Notably, banks outside the top ten collectively held 28.6% of the industry deposits, indicating room for competition in the market.
The ranking of banks in Ghana based on their share of industry loans and advances reveals the market presence of each bank in lending activities.
Ecobank Ghana holds the highest share, followed by Stanbic Bank, Absa Bank, and GCB Bank. Agricultural Development Bank of Ghana, Cal Bank, and Société Générale Ghana also feature in the top positions.
The Government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Program had a significant impact on banks’ balance sheets in 2022, resulting in decreased values of trading assets and retained earnings compared to the previous year.
Capital adequacy and efficiency
In the review of the performance of banks in Ghana, several key observations were made regarding their capital adequacy and efficiency ratios, particularly the cost to income and cost to asset ratios.
FBN Bank improved its cost significantly and positioned itself as the best bank in terms of income spent on cost in 2022, despite falling out of the top 10 in 2021. Guaranty Trust Bank consistently maintained its position as the second-best bank in this category.
Access Bank retained its position in the top 3, although it dropped to the 3rd position in 2022 after being the top bank in 2020 and 2021. OmniBSIC showed significant improvement by placing 9th in 2022, indicating successful cost-cutting measures.
FBN Bank consistently held the top position in the capital adequacy ratio, with a range of 56 per cent to 74 per cent from 2020 to 2022, maintaining a significant lead over other banks. Bank of Africa experienced a decline in its position, moving from 2nd in 2020 to 5th in 2022, possibly due to the impact of the DDEP.
Guaranty Trust Bank maintained a relatively stable position, moving from 3rd in 2020 to 4th in both 2021 and 2022. Zenith Bank’s position fluctuated, going from 4th in 2020 to 3rd and 4th in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
