Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, chairman of Groupe Nduom, has emphasized the negative impact of the collapse of indigenous banks in 2018 and 2019 on Ghana’s local economy, particularly affecting micro and medium-sized businesses.

He argued that foreign and high street banks have not adequately filled the gap left by these banks, contributing to ongoing economic difficulties.

Dr. Nduom made these comments during the second phase of the #BringBackGNBank national tour, which began in Ghana’s northern regions on August 18, 2024.

This phase follows an initial tour that started on May 27, 2024, covering six regions: Eastern, Western, Central, Volta, Greater Accra, and Ashanti.

The current phase of the tour will involve visits to all 300 branches of GN Bank across Ghana’s sixteen regions.

The goal is to assess the condition of the bank’s properties and engage with Ghanaians, particularly market vendors who were key customers of the bank. The tour will cover Wa, Bolgatanga, Walewale, Karaga, Tamale, and Sunyani.

In an interview, Dr. Nduom described the campaign as a “national journey for local economic development.”

He noted that this tour revisits themes from a similar campaign in 2018/19, when the central bank withdrew licenses from several indigenous banks, including GN Bank.

The earlier campaign aimed to support local banks that had significantly contributed to regional economic development by providing accessible banking services.

“This tour reaffirms our commitment to revitalizing GN Bank and ensuring secure banking services are available nationwide,” Dr. Nduom said.

He added that the campaign will also address the reasons behind the bank’s license withdrawal and outline the steps shareholders are taking to restore it.

Dr. Nduom criticized the license revocation, arguing that GN Bank did not deserve such action and called on the current administration to settle outstanding debts owed to Groupe Nduom companies.

He highlighted that the non-payment of these debts was a major factor in the bank’s insolvency.

“We urge the Akufo-Addo administration to lift the embargo on payments to Groupe Nduom companies and contractors,” he said, noting that the debt has now exceeded 7.1 billion Ghana cedis.

The ongoing tour aims to gauge public interest in the return of GN Bank and assess the demand for its mobile and digital banking services.

Dr. Nduom also plans to showcase Groupe Nduom’s extensive contributions to the Ghanaian economy, including its involvement in rice production, television manufacturing, and other sectors.