Overview of the Banking Industry:
 Some
of the banks in Banjul
are indigenous West African banks. Trust Bank is Gambian
established and owned. There are currently over 13 banks
operating in the financial sector of The Gambia of which
one is an Islamic institution and 12 are running conventional,
commercial operations. Two licenced banking operations
began operations in 2008 which are Sky and Zenith which
are both Nigerian banks and the latest being Prime which
joined the sector in 2009. They are all regulated by
the Central Bank which has certain overseeing functions
over the commercial private financial institutions as
well as being the clearing house in the system. Furthermore,
it only issues licences to either a company incorporated
under the Companies Act; or a foreign financial institution.
General Opening Hours:
08:00 - 16:00-18:00 Monday to Thursday
08:00 - 12:30 Friday & 14:30 to 16:00 Friday
08:00-13:00 Saturday.
NOTE: Times do vary from institution to institution
and all are closed on Sundays and Public Holidays.
Common Services:
There are a number of services which the vast majority
of the private institutions provide i.e.
•
Current Accounts
• Savings Accounts
• Fixed Deposit
• Electronic Funds Transfers
• Government T-Bills
Treasury Bills are issued with maturities lasting either
91, 182, or 364 days. They are issue every Wednesday
or as may be decided by the CBG, which publishes a provisional
issuance calendar.
• Private and Business Loans
There are also other services depending on which company
you go to.
Fees:
In order to improve on transparency it is the duty of
banks to disclose to the general public, the fees and
charges that are levied on all forms of services. Furthermore,
there is a schedule of required information relating
to the above which must be sent to the CGB at the end
of each quarter.
Definition:
According to the Financial Institutions Act 2003 "
"banking business" means the business of receiving
deposits on current, savings or other account, paying
or collecting cheques drawn by or paid in by customers,
provision of finance consultancy and advisory services
relating to corporate and investment matters, making
or managing investment on behalf of any person, and
the provision of insurance marketing services and capital
market business or such other services as the Secretary
of State may by regulations designate as banking business." |
