I made every effort to keep Capital Bank from collapsing – Ato Essien

Former Managing Director of the defunct Capital Bank, William Ato Essien has revealed that he did everything possible to keep the bank from collapsing.

According to him, he traveled the world, looking for potential investors to help keep the bank financially viable.

“I globe-trotted just to secure funds to keep the bank financially viable. At some point, I had to keep reminding myself of the country I was in because I will sleep in Washington DC and wake up somewhere in India in a hotel room,” he recounted.

Mr. Essien said, he was later led by Yoofi Grant, the current Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Investment Promotion Council (GIPC), to one Ray Sowah, the current CEO of GCB Bank who was then in the UK, to secure funds from a UK-based Ghanaian business man, Ambrose Goldsmith.

He said, the agreement was for him to make payment of 100,000 Euros to meet conditions precedent, after which 35 million Euros will be pumped into his bank.

According to him, he made the 100,000 Euros payment but after two years he is yet to receive the 35 million Euros promised him.

“I am still waiting for the money because I do not believe I have been fleeced by Mr Grant and Mr Sowah,” he said.

BACKGROUND

Capital Bank was among the first universal banks to go down following reforms by the Central Bank beginning in 2017.

Capital Bank together with UT Bank was handed over to GCB Bank to manage.

The action was triggered by the inability of the two banks to turn around their negative capital adequacy position which has lingered on for some time now.

Later in 2018, five other banks were amalgamated into the Consolidated Bank Ghana (CBG).