Leverage Microfinance Company reinvents itself
Leverage Microfinance Company Ltd, formerly called Leverage Financial Service Ltd, has recapitalised to GH¢1 million in line with Bank of Ghana’s (BoG) regulations.
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With its latest capital, the company has met BoG’s minimum capital requirement for micofinance companies.
The increment of the company’s capital is the first phase of a recapitalisation process that aims to raise the company’s stated capital to GHS2 million by close of this year, ahead of BoG’s 2018 deadline.
Leverage’s mission will now be to become a financial lever that will propel its clients from concept development through to the realisation of their full potential by being within the reach of clients to develop tailor-made products .
Inauguration
Introducing the new shareholders and directors at the opening of the rebranded company last Friday at its premises at Dansoman in Accra, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, Mr Gilbert K.N. Adamtey said the company would focus on its core values of integrity and respect with a touch of professionalism in serving its clients.
He said the company had been relocated from Sakaman to its present premises to get more visibility and also closer to its clientele.
Mr Adamtey applauded the initial founders of the company and gave the assurance, “We will ensure that we work together with all our stakeholders by understanding their requirement and developing tailor-made products to address their needs.
He said the company would rely on the skills and professionalism of its Board of Directors to realise its vision of reaching out to African entrepreneurs.
New products
Mr Adamtey announced the introduction of five new product trump cards onto the market and named them as the leverage lever business loans, a credit facility designed for promising and realistic business ideas.
“The second one is the lock box, a product designed for households and individuals with busy schedules or at a distance from our office premises to save with no hustle,” he said adding that the third product, known as the “Afes3s3” Account, geared towards savings and yielding for a specific purpose.
The fourth product, which is known as the leverage rhodium, he said, was a premium account designed with an investment package embedded for beneficiaries.
“The new phase of the LCM, thus its new vision is to be a leading provider of financial solutions to livelihoods in Africa with the intent of going beyond Ghana,” he explained.
Growth of microfinance & challenges
In a keynote address, an international financial management consultant, Dr Christopher Sokpor said the fast growing microfinance industry in Africa was a healthy development that would break the barrier of accessing loans by small businesses from the traditional financial institutions.
He noted that while entrepreneurship was growing rapidly in Africa, entrepreneurs continued to face significant domestic challenges that impeded their efforts which included lack of access to funding, support services, skills training and infrastructure as well as administrative barriers.
“African entrepreneurs need the same things any business needs – a predictable regulatory environment, reliable and affordable transport and power infrastructure, a healthy, educated and productive talent pool and access to affordable credit,” he said.
Dr Sokpor predicted that the biggest business opportunities in the coming decade would be created by Africans who started businesses, generated jobs and wealth as well as captured growth opportunities as Leverage Microfinance Company was demonstrating.
The unbanked
Dr Sokpor said the microfinance industry was considered, “the holy grail” for empowering the unbanked and providing millions of African entrepreneurs a source of funding to grow their businesses and themselves into prosperity.
He challenged the gathering to be ambassadors for entrepreneurship in Africa, saying, “You are a generation of wealth creators, who share leverage’s commitment to the economic and social transformation of Africa through the use of innovative micro-financing products and services never experienced in our country.”
Dented image
The Executive Secretary of the Ghana Association of Microfinance Companies, Mr Joseph Donkor said the association was aware of the activities of few bad ones that were denting its image and would deal with such individuals to restore its enviable past image.
He was excited that Leverage Microfinance had joined the family, recalling that microfinance institutions offered speedy services to its clients as compared to the traditional financial institutions.
Mr Donkor pledged that the association was there to support new ones such as Leverage Microfinance to find their bearings. —GB