Segun Agbaye, Deputy Managing Director of GT Bank in Nigeria, has disclosed his bank's desire to open branches in Francophone West African countries in the next 12 months.

Mr. Agbaye said this strategic direction is in pursuance of the bank's sub-regional expansion drive to capture more markets. The GTbank Nigeria number two made these remarks during a press conference with journalists at the bank's Banjul Head Office, along Kairaba Avenue, on Tuesday, as part of a string of engagements lined up for his visit. He told journalists that GTbank has learned from its shortcomings in the Nigeria's banking industry and it is determined to extend its tentacles to other sub-regional countries to contribute to the growth of West African economies. He then explained: "What we are doing is implementing and learning from all the mistakes that we have made in Nigeria; move out to the sub-continent, improving on all the things that worked for us in Nigeria and avoiding all the things that didn't work for us." He said the bank has geared up in terms of "expansion, customer-base and our culture. I think we have achieved a lot. This year alone, we were the first bank on secured credit. We were the first bank to have listed on the London Stock Exchange".

He expressed his satisfaction with the performance of the GTbank Gambia in the last few years. However, he acknowledged the challenges the bank was faced within its first, three to four years of operation. He then summed up this as a gestation period for the bank in the country's banking industry and then noted: "We are understanding the environment. In the last one year and a half, GTbank Gambia started to do what we knew it was capable of doing. We are also proud of The Gambia. It is doing excellent and its economy has grown so well and the GTbank is doing very well in that part of the economy." He disclosed that the bank will surprise the Gambian population with its growth rate in the next two years, besides the successes registered in the last year.

Commenting on the bank's position in 2007, Mr. Agbaye said GTbank's focus is to be the most profitable, efficient and highest quality bank in the continent. "Our job is to maximise shareholder value," he confirmed. On the training of journalists, the GTbank Nigeria Deputy MD Agbaye expressed concern that their trained journalists do not adequately comprehend financial analysis. He then elaborated: "You might have a bank that is large, but is not profitable. But people might see that bank as doing better." He said it's the responsibility of the trained journalists to help society understand better the realities surrounding performances in terms of financial analysis. However, he assured that the bank will not relent in its drive to develop the skills of financial journalists in the continent.