Securities Depository posts strong results
The decision by the Bank of Ghana and the Ghana stock exchange
to merge their respective depositories into the existing Central Securities Depository Ghana Limited (CSD) last year has started yielding results, following a significant growth in the depository's operating income and total assets in the first year of operation.
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Its 2014 audited results showed that the depository's operating income rose from GH₵5.4 million in 2013 to GH₵11.2 million as of December, last year, representing a growth rate of 107.4 per cent within the 12-month period.
Total assets, which stood at GH₵8.5 million in 2013, also went up to GH₵12.1 million in 2014. This represents a 42.4 per cent growth within the period.
The Chief Executive Officer of CSD, Mr Stephen K. Tetteh, who disclosed these in Accra, said these developments led to a marked increment in the depository's profit levels.
Net profit closed last year at GH₵2.73 million compared to the GH₵1.8 million recorded in 2013, representing a 50 per cent growth, he said at the news conference in the depository's headquarters in Accra.
The press conference was to afford the depository the opportunity to explain its operations to the general public through the media.
Mr Tetteh said the GSE, which used to own 18 per cent of the CSD now owns 30 per cent with the BoG stake also dropping from the initial 82 per cent to 70 per cent.
Dematerialisation of share certificates
Touching more on some of the success stories of the depository within its first year of operation, the CEO said the depository was also making gains in the conversion of paper share certificates into electronic ones.
Currently, Mr Tetteh said his outfit had converted 8.5 billion shares that were hitherto in paper certificates into electronic shares. The total share certificates converted into electronic, technically called dematerialisation, represents 85 per cent of all shares listed on the GSE.
Additionally, he said the depository had opened about 647,212 accounts for investors of the Government of Ghana (GoG) securities and 82,481 for shareholders in equity.
"The value of GoG of Ghana securities outstanding in the depository totalled GH₵28.16 billion at the end of 2014, of which foreign investors hold about 25 per cent. We supported borrowings among banks through repurchase agreements to the tune of GH₵195.8 billion in 2014," he added.
"In addition, we processed and paid a total of GH₵50.7 billion to more than 1.2 million beneficiaries in interest and maturities of treasury bills and bonds," the CEO said.