GCB Bank has been formally recognized as the top-performing bank in four key industry metrics for the 2025 financial year, following a comprehensive assessment conducted by international accounting and advisory firm, PwC. The report, published in June this year, details a significant shift in the banking landscape within Ghana.
The four metrics in question – deposits, loans and advances, operating assets, and total operating income – demonstrate GCB’s substantial leadership. The bank’s performance surpasses local competitors across these areas, with a 12.37% market share in industry deposits, a 1.85 percentage point increase compared to the closest competitor at 10.52%, and 17.8% of loans and advances, surpassing the second-ranked bank by 14.2%.
Furthermore, GCB accounted for 12.3% of the industry’s operating assets, compared with 10.8% for the second-ranked bank, indicating a significant portion of the bank’s assets are actively deployed. This figure underscores the scale of GCB’s lending operations, which support the bank’s substantial deposit base.
The bank’s share of industry operating income also rose to 14.2% in 2025, up from 12.5% in 2024, reflecting a strengthening of its financial position.
PwC’s analysis highlights a crucial trend: falling interest rates are beginning to impact a banking model heavily reliant on interest income. The report argues that banks must increasingly combine balance sheet strength with stronger asset deployment, broader revenue sources, and enhanced operational efficiency to mitigate margin tightening.
GCB’s profitability numbers, however, contribute significantly to this broader picture. PwC reports that the bank’s return on equity (ROE) increased from 29.8% in 2024 to 34.0% in 2025, the highest among banks in its first-quartile peer group, demonstrating a strong return on shareholder equity despite the industry’s shift towards lower rates.
The results suggest that GCB’s expansion into scale, combined with a higher return on equity, is proving beneficial, even as the industry navigates a challenging economic environment.
Managing Director Farihan Alhassan commented that GCB’s continued leadership across key balance-sheet indicators reflects customer confidence and a strong strategic vision. The bank’s focus remains on deepening customer relationships, bolstering digital transformation initiatives, and strengthening its workforce and culture, recognizing the intensified competition within the industry.
GCB’s half-year results reveal a compelling narrative: customer deposits reached GH¢51.49 billion, net loans and advances reached GH¢22.19 billion, and the non-performing loan ratio declined to 4.7%.
Meanwhile, operating income rose 36.1% year-on-year, while profit before tax increased 45.8%.
The PwC rankings provide a crucial assessment of GCB’s market position in 2025, demonstrating that GCB enters this transition with considerable scale and a strategic advantage. The bank’s success will hinge on its ability to translate its established scale into sustainable, value-driven assets, ensuring consistent returns without compromising asset quality.
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Source: Graphic Online
