Societe Generale Ghana convened women business owners for an intimate engagement, creating a platform for direct conversations between the entrepreneurs and the bank’s senior leadership on financing, business growth, sustainability and the banking support required to scale.
The engagement forms part of the bank’s ongoing efforts to better understand and address the financing and business support challenges faced by women-led enterprises in Ghana.
The session provided the entrepreneurs with an opportunity to share their experiences, highlight the challenges affecting their businesses and discuss the opportunities they see for future growth.
For Societe Generale Ghana, the conversations also provided valuable insight into how the bank can continue to make its products, services and relationship support more responsive to the realities of women-owned businesses.
In his opening remarks, the Managing Director reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to supporting Ghanaian businesses with the ambition and potential to grow, compete and create lasting value.
“Societe Generale Ghana is committed to seeing Ghanaian businesses do more than survive; they must have the opportunity to grow, compete and create lasting value. The businesses represented here demonstrate the ambition and potential within Ghana’s private sector. As a bank, our responsibility is to listen, understand what stands in your way and walk alongside you as you take your businesses to the next level,” said Hakim Ouzzani, Managing Director, Societe Generale Ghana.
The engagement also reinforced the bank’s belief that supporting women entrepreneurs requires more than access to financial products. Understanding the specific realities of their businesses, providing relevant advice and building long-term relationships are equally important to helping enterprises grow.
The Company Secretary, Angela Bonsu, spoke on Societe Generale Ghana’s sustainability agenda, highlighting the Group’s long-standing commitment to responsible financing.
She introduced to the participants, the SG Woman offer, the bank’s proposition designed to support women-led businesses and the women driving Ghana’s entrepreneurial growth.
She described the proposition as more than a banking service, but a commitment to providing women entrepreneurs with the resources and support needed to grow. Qualifying businesses can access credit facilities with little or no collateral, enjoy dedicated relationship management, free mentorship through partner programmes, and business advisory and capacity-building support through SG Home of Business.
The discussion covered the bank’s credit assessment process and financing solutions available to support businesses across different stages of growth. These included working capital facilities such as overdrafts and revolving advances, as well as invoice discounting, factoring and purchase order financing. Longer-term solutions discussed included term loans, finance leases and green financing for sustainable investments such as solar energy and electric vehicles. Participants were also encouraged to consider financing options that align with their business cash-flow cycles to support efficient growth.
The session also highlighted the bank’s Privilege Banking product, which extends beyond business banking to address the personal financial needs of business owners, including mortgage solutions and home insurance.
An open discussion provided participants with the opportunity to have their questions addressed by the senior management of the bank. Participants also shared positive experiences of their relationship with Societe Generale Ghana and the role the bank has played in supporting their business growth.
