Managing Director of GCB Bank, Farihan Alhassan, says the bank’s success is not defined by profit, but by the impact it makes on businesses and lives.

Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, he pushed back against the notion that lending to SMEs is too risky under tightening regulations.

“So we're not just giving credit to customers. We're changing people's lives. So people need us to change their lives, and they have a genuine story to tell.”

He insisted that GCB has a responsibility to support local businesses, even in difficult circumstances.

“We are not just any bank. We are Ghana's indigenous bank. We are Ghana's number one bank. We have to support those customers.”

Mr Alhassan said the bank does not shy away from risk but works with clients to overcome it.

“We can't run away from supporting customers because we think that they are risky. It's our job as a Bank to see how we can work with these customers to address some of the risks that we see in their businesses.”

He described the bank’s relationship with SMEs as a long-term partnership.

“And so whilst others see them as customers, we see them as partners. We are partners on a journey to growing these businesses, and we have to take that risk on them.”

He stressed that even struggling businesses deserve support.

“So we're not going to run away from them because we don't want to create bad loans. If the business is bad, we would work to make it good so they can assess the credit.”

According to him, abandoning such businesses would leave a gap in the economy.

“But you just can't run away from them because you say it's a bad business. Who then would support those kinds of business?”

He underscored that the bank’s internal focus is shifting from financial returns to measurable impact.

“And don't forget that our measure as a bank is not in how much money we make, but in how many lives we touch and how many businesses we grow.”

Mr Alhassan said this philosophy now drives decision-making across the institution.

“As I've been telling the team, we need to begin to think about what level of impact we are making, and clients' business growth.”

He pointed to practical benchmarks for evaluating success.

“So today, if a business made a profit of GH¢200 million, the question was asking us, how did our support enable that business to meet the ¢200 million?”

He added that job creation is also a key metric.

“If a business employs 20 people, our concern should be, how then do we support this business to employ 40 people?”

Despite concerns about shareholder returns, he argued that growth in client businesses ultimately benefits the bank.

“When the businesses grow, you grow with them.”

He maintained that GCB’s strategy aligns with the broader economy.

“The thing is, from my end, it's just the fact that we believe that GCB is not just any other bank. We have to be seen to play in the real sector of Ghana's economy, and so we're just following the economic trajectory of this country.”