This week marks the entrance of Bank PHB into our currency tables and the Weekly Dalasi Update. MARKET BEAT wishes to welcome PHB and may their entrance be the beginning of good and great things for the bank, the economy and the general banking fraternity in the country.

The coming of PHB just adds more voices to the already existing popular economic geometrics that the Gambian Economy is really going places and banking is one of the most lucrative investments presently in the country. With mortgages and land business suffering form the September Cash Syndrome (SCS) when cash flows and liquidity is a major problem in the Gambia and within sub-Saharan Africa. Land and estate business is doing poorly so banking is a very lucrative area to put your funds into and let your money work for you.

In the same vein, the coming of PHB further buttresses the point that the Gambia is becoming the Switzerland of Africa. Meaning your money is safe in the Gambia and the peace, stability and decorum in the country it is known for is an icing on the cake for people looking for a safe heaven for their wealth and monies. Please come to the Gambia and remember bankers are indeed very shrewd people and seeing them come to the Gambia is a sign that there is indeed a treasure in this country for people with skills and money to tap.

With these banks coming here and being just informed of Oceanic Bank Plc on the periphery the government has a singular chance to develop the micro finance capacity and base of the country in collaboration with the Central Bank of the Gambia. What a micro finance bill or Micro Finance Act can do is to create lots of cash, input and a capital base for small scale Gambian entrepreneurs notably our rural and farming communities. I hope and pray that these leads will be exploited to make poverty and lack of capital a thing of the past.

December 2008 groundnut season

With the coming of PHB adding to the galaxy of other banks operating in the country I will challenge them to look at the lucrative groundnut trade in The Gambia and make strategies of intervention to help the farming communities and help themselves too. The groundnut trade is a very attractive investment arm or prospect for any investor, if you know your way and I do hope some of these banks will look into means and ways of going into groundnut trading as financiers or operators. With the trade liberalization in the country there are no legal hitches to work with our farmers for a better Gambia.

The Dalasi update

The Dalasi is on its impressive performances once again as it continues its gains against major world currencies notably the Pound Sterling, the US Dollar and Euro.
The Dalasi has again this week registered some more minor gains in trading against major world currencies.

Market Beat has the privilege to bring to you the currency tables as we buy and sell in our major banks as dictated by the Central Bank of the Gambia (CBG) as at the 21st. August 2008, thus: