Aurelia Baaba Ofori Odame Heads SOEs & Afro-Asia Banking Unit at GCB Bank PLC
GCB Bank PLC (GCB) is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Executive, Aurelia Baaba Ofori Odame as Head of Afro Asia Trade and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). This strategic appointment comes at a pivotal time as the Bank accelerates its commitment to deepening cross-regional trade, enhancing public sector partnerships, and unlocking new growth opportunities across Africa and Asia.
In this new role, Aurelia will lead the development and execution of the Bank’s Afro- Asia trade and SOE engagement strategy across two of the world’s most dynamic and rapidly evolving economic regions. The position reflects the Bank’s vision to be a bridge between emerging markets—facilitating capital, trade flows, access to markets and development impact.
The Africa-Asia trade corridor has grown significantly over the past decade, driven by expanding infrastructure investment, digital transformation, and increasing private-public sector collaboration. At the same time, SOEs continue to play a vital role in national development agendas, particularly in sectors such as agriculture, health, sustainable energy, transportation, education and telecommunications. This is an opportune time for GCB Bank to support and significantly impact trade flows and activities in both mature and emerging trade corridors.
“At GCB we acknowledge our position as an indigenous bank passionate about the growth of Ghanaian businesses and development of the economy” said Managing Director, Farihan Alhassan. “Aurelia’s mandate therefore is to deliver a cohesive strategy that enhances the Bank’s offerings to SOEs and trade clients, encompassing bespoke financial solutions, sustainable trade finance, and advisory services to take advantage of the opportunities in Africa and Asia for national growth.”
The Bank’s strategy to being ‘customer centric’ and ‘obsessed’ with clients, demands a deep understanding of client needs, proactive engagement and the development of tailored solutions that create real value for businesses and for sectors. With Aurelia’s appointment, the Bank reaffirms its commitment to:
- Supporting inclusive and sustainable trade growth with Africa and rest of the world.
- Creating access to market opportunities for businesses.
- Enabling infrastructure and industrial transformation through funding
- Catalysing public-private partnerships; and
- Enhancing its value proposition to strategic government-linked entities.
Aurelia brings deep expertise, regional knowledge, and a strong track record in building cross-border relationships within Africa and Asia that will be instrumental in shaping the Bank’s future. Aurelia is a seasoned banking executive with over 17 years of experience in retail, corporate, and commercial banking, specializing in cross-border trade, trade finance, relationship management, and strategic business development.
She joins GCB from Stanbic Bank, where she led the Africa-China Trade Banking unit, pioneering a transformative franchise bridging trade between Ghana and China and creating intra-Africa corridors. Under her leadership, the flagship franchise achieved over 100 percent year-on-year balance sheet growth and facilitated export inflows exceeding USD 350 million, making it one of the most profitable and fastest-growing within the Standard Bank Group.
In her previous role, Aurelia was instrumental in the utilization of trade lines with an Asian policy bank to support trade transactions, drove the adoption of the Renminbi (RMB) for trade settlements. She also established Stanbic Bank’s first dedicated Trade Hub for Africa-China and intra-Africa trade.
Her career spans progressive leadership roles in Branch Management, Retail & Consumer Banking, Business & Commercial Banking, and Corporate Banking at Stanbic and United Bank for Africa (UBA), where she consistently delivered innovative trade solutions and exceptional performance.
The Bank is delighted to welcome Aurelia to lead this strategy as it continues to strategically connect with Africa and Asia through finance, trade, and shared opportunity.
GCB Bank PLC is a leading player in Ghana’s banking industry, with 184 branches, 340 ATMs and a host of banking agents spread across the length and breadth of the country. As Ghana’s premier indigenous bank, GCB Bank has, since its establishment in 1953, been described as a systemic bank with significant contribution to Ghana’s growth in multiple sectors including oil and gas, agriculture, commerce and others. The Bank has transformed itself into one of Ghana’s most modern banks in terms of its financial intermediation capabilities including digital payment platforms and consequently strengthened its corporate reputation both at home and abroad. The Bank’s relationship with its stakeholders is delivered on a platform of trust, support and collaboration and anchored through its brand promise, “Your Bank for Life”
