The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) Council has announced, on November 17, the appointment of Mrs. Abena Osei-Poku as the Chairperson of the Council, effective October 14, 2021.She is the second female in twenty-six years to become the Chairperson of the Exchange after Mrs. Gloria Nikoi of blessed memory. She takes over from Mr. Ray Anselm Sowah, whose tenure ended at the last Annual general meeting held on 28th July,2021.
The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) is Ghana’s main stock exchange, located in the capital Accra. With its automated trading system, the GSE opens its doors to continuous trading every business day. There are currently 37 companies listed on the GSE. As of November 12, 2021, the GSE Composite Index has recorded a return of 53.02% with a market capitalization of over US$10 billion. The bond market traded nearly 30 billion usd, up 65.39% last year.
Abena Osei-Poku is one of the three independent members on the Council representing the Associate members, and is also the Managing Director of Absa Bank Ghana, a systematically important player in the Ghanaian economy. Abena Osei-Poku is credited with leading the successful Barclays transition from a “100-year-old household brand” into Absa.
She is responsible for charting a transformational direction for the bank and for entrenching the new brand amongst key clients, customers, and all stakeholders. Prior to this, she worked at Absa Group in South Africa as Managing Director responsible for the Corporate & Investment Banking business in East and West Africa.
Abena Osei-Poku has over 27 years of experience in the banking sector. Prior to joining Absa Bank (formerly Barclays), she worked at Standard Chartered as Director of global corporates, after having served as the banking group’s Head of Special assets in West and Central Africa. At Barclays Bank, she held various management positions in the areas of risk management, corporate governance, business management, strategy, client coverage and change management.
She has broad Board experience having previously sat on the boards of telecommunications (Airtel Mobile Money Limited), Commerce (United Kingdom and Ghana Chamber of Commerce, UKGCC) and hospitality. She is currently the Chairperson of the advisory board of the College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana. In addition, she sits on the executive councils of the Ghana Association of Bankers and the National Banking College. She is an honorary member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and an honorary fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana.
Abena Osei-Poku has a Bachelor in economics and statistics of the University of Ghana Legon and has an MBA from the Manchester Business School in the United Kingdom. She has participated in various leadership and other programs worldwide. She is fluent in English with a working knowledge of French.
