GCB: GCB Bank : 2024 ESG Status Update

Environmental Sustainability, APRIL Social Responsibility, and Sound Corporate Governance GCB Bank PLC ESG Status Update Content Overview About this report Overview of GCB Bank PLC Message from Leadership Sustainability at GCB The Policy and Sustainability Focus Our Sustainability Commitment ESG Governance Framing the strategy The Strategic Underpinnings Baseline Assessment Double Materiality Assessment Our Sustainability Footprints Community Impact Diversity and Inclusion Health and Wellbeing Training and Human Capital Climate Change Adaptation Climate Change Mitigation Business Ethics and Corporate Culture Information Security GCB Bank PLC | 2 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update About our Sustainability Report Scope of the report At GCB Bank PLC, we are deeply committed to environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and sound corporate governance as a moral imperative and a strategic thrust - a true demonstration of the value we place on our people and the communities in which we operate. As a leading Indigenous bank with a strong connection to our heritage, we have always championed initiatives aligned with ESG principles as a part of our core operations, albeit informally. We have started and are making significant progress towards a formalized ESG transformation of the Bank across all our lines of service, starting with a comprehensive medium-term sustainability strategy. This Sustainability report is, therefore, a voluntary disclosure of our Business As Usual (BAU) operations that we consider ESG compliant and aligned to our ESG aspirations. We have positioned this report as a Communication of Progress (CoP) on sustainability, not a report compliant with any known reporting framework. The report covers GCB Bank PLC and our banking business only for the period from January 2024 to 31st December 2024. The report captures our sustainability footprints as a bank on a BAU basis and the progress we have made towards full ESG integration across the bank, our strategy, our material topics, and our high-level aspirations of building a sustainable bank. Report Generation process The data and The key contact The ESG Working content of this persons from the Committee report were contributing (ESGWC) within collated from departments/ the bank provided various units, the relevant oversight for the departments members of the report within the bank Executive Team of the Bank, reviewed the Content of the Report to ensure accuracy Contributing Departments/ Business Units • Corporate Affairs • Properties and Estates • Board Secretariat • Commercial Banking • Compliance • GCB Clinic • Retail banking • Human Resource • Finance • Support Services • Learning and Development GCB Bank PLC | 3 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update Towards a Sustainable Bank As a leading indigenous bank, we recognize the importance of nurturing Ghanaian businesses to create wealth and prosperity for Ghanaians. However, in fulfilling the needs of society today, we are conscious about not jeopardizing the opportunities for future generations. Our commitment is to drive an innovative, sustainable, and environmentally responsible growth through our lending practices and internal operations. However, we recognize that we cannot achieve these ambitions alone. We are therefore pursuing our sustainability goals strategically by developing the requisite partnerships with our staff, clients, and community through innovative financing solutions with sustainability at the core. GCB Bank PLC | 4 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update GCB Bank: Our Vision, Mission and Values Vision Mission Values Vision To be a leading bank in our markets Mission Provide first class banking solutions for our customers and value for all stakeholders. Corporate values (Culture Underpinnings) S T A R S Service Trust Action Relationships Smiles v Welcoming v Honest v Hard-Working v Committed v Positive v Attentive v Responsible v Energetic v Supportive v Confident v Efficient v Reliable v Motivated v Encouraging v Courteous GCB Bank PLC | 5 Sustainability Report - 2024 Update ESG Status Branches agencies ATMs Largest and most diversified distribution GCB: The Bank At Glance # FI Distribution Buy side & Sell side / Most active player on the secondary FI market 5 0 Assets M+ GHS . Bn Customers . Bn A leading Bank in Largest Both Assets and Customer Base Liabilities GCB Bank PLC | 6 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update Ownership Structure GA-102-3830 GA GL - - 334 1 -621 GA-263-4698 GA-142-7699 - GA-155-6609 GE-370-2646 SSNIT GA- GL GA -026 -412 -2020 -0880 166-81 30% Others 49% GoG 21% Market positioning Top 2 position in assets & liabilities Dominant in all our market segments Earnings Diversity Sales and CX Digital solutions Successful Business Transformation • Retail - 47% • Double-digit client growth y/y • Industry-leading • Improved trans. banking • Corporate - 24% • Deposits up 58% y/y mobile app • capacity • Global Markets - 20% • Improved product per • Other digital solutions Strategic collaborations • Commercial - 9% customer • Intensified sales effectiveness • CIMG marketing-oriented • Strengthened risk bank of the year • management Improved operational excellence GCB Bank PLC | 7 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update Message from the Managing Director Beyond regulatory compliance, the GCB Bank ESG agenda is built on a steadfast commitment to sustainability as both a moral imperative and a strategic advantage, reflecting our unwavering commitment to customers, employees, shareholders, partners, and the communities we serve. Farihan Alhassan - Managing Director As we reflect on the remarkable years in our history as a leading indigenous bank, I am proud to be leading the charge in consolidating the gains chalked over the recent years as we work together to position GCB Bank as a distant first - a truly dominant brand in the banking industry in Ghana. Over the past four years, we have transformed the Bank by strengthening our systems, empowering our people, refining our processes, and enhancing governance. These efforts have driven significant achievements, including diversified revenue streams, modernized digital solutions, a stronger risk culture, and a more customer- centric approach. We are guided by our mission to provide first-class banking solutions for customers and value for all stakeholders in pursuit of our ultimate goal to dominate the Banking Sector in Ghana. To anchor the gains and forge ahead for sustainable growth, our strategy is built on three core pillars - Digital Transformation, Customer Experience, and People and Talent. While we believe in these pillars to drive the bank to dominance, we grapple with the realities of our time an existential threat to the traditional way of doing business, which requires us to adapt quickly. Our recent history has seen pandemics, geopolitical tensions, and the resultant supply-chain disruptions resulting in a full- blown economic, financial, and debt crisis, with most regions and countries saddled with record-high debt levels. In addition, climate change and associated risks have become topical, and their impact on living conditions, cost of living, and widening inequalities has become evident. In Ghana, floods have become a mainstay annually. We have also seen low water levels in the Akosombo dam leading to power fluctuations and load shedding, and rising water levels in the dam leading to spillage almost in an equal measure, which destroyed properties and livelihoods and displaced residents in the catchment areas for a prolonged period. Additionally, acute weather events also manifested in the dry spell recorded around the northern belt of Ghana, which impacted food supply and inflation. These events and the frequent tidal waves along the coastal regions and the associated disruptions to lives and livelihoods are among the manifestations of climate change and related risks. Perhaps even more instructive is the slowing of cocoa production due to unfavourable weather conditions. Due to the changes in rainfall patterns, cocoa production, a mainstay of most rural families, has been on the decline in the last couple of years, resulting in income loss to both farmers and the state amidst the pronounced FX impact of the dwindling receipts from cocoa exports. Thus, it is clear to us that our strategy to dominate cannot be achieved without a collaborative effort towards sustainability. We acknowledge the interdependencies between our financial success and the collective well- being of the people and the societies within which we operate, which is the basis for our sustainability drive. Beyond regulatory compliance, the GCB Bank ESG agenda is built on a steadfast commitment to sustainability as both a strategic and moral imperative, reflecting our unwavering commitment to customers, employees, shareholders, partners, and the communities we serve. Our approach is ambitious as we have set out to be globally competitive in sustainability. Consequently, we have benchmarked our medium-term ESG strategy against the best global practices to minimize any negative environmental and social impacts while maximizing positive outcomes. This approach will ensure that our growth and success are aligned with the well-being of our stakeholders and the environment within which we operate. This is the commitment we are making to our stakeholders to build a sustainable bank, one with an utmost sense of responsibility to the environment and the people we serve. We are going to every length and are sparing no resources to achieve this goal as we believe that the resilience and sustainability of our financial performance are closely linked. GCB Bank PLC | 8 Sustainability Report - 2024 ESG Status Update Message from the Chief Risk Officer We are strengthening the integration of ESG risk considerations into our credit assessment frameworks and realigning our approaches to fully align with the Clim