Foremost African financial institution; Guaranty Trust Bank plc has been
awarded a triple International Organization for Standardization
certification: ISO/IEC 27001- for Information Security, ISO 20000 – for IT
Service Management and ISO 22301 – for Business Continuity Management
along with PAS 99:2012 Integrated Management System certification by the
British Standard Institute (BSI).
The British Standard Institute (BSI) certification recognizes companies
that have implemented systems and structures that ensure their operations
are in line with international best practices. With more than 70,000
certified clients and more full-time assessors than any other
certification body worldwide, the BSI Group is one of the largest and most
experienced certification bodies focused primarily on training, auditing
and certification of qualified organizations.
The certification attests that Guaranty Trust Bank has instituted
internationally accepted processes that guaranty the security of its
customers’ information, the ability of the institution to consistently
provide quality service and its capacity to resume business within a short
timeframe in the event of any business disruptions. The Bank embarked on
gaining the certification of its Management System Standards last year in
order to align with international best practice and meet the increasing
expectations of its various stakeholders.
According to Mr. Theuns Kotze, Regional Managing Director BSI, Middle East
& Africa, “To achieve certification to these standards, a company must
show a continuous, structured commitment towards assessing security risks,
managing sensitive information, and ensuring a holistic plan is in place
to respond to any potential disruptions. In obtaining these
certifications, Guaranty Trust Bank clearly demonstrates that they are
operating at this level and meets the needs of their customers”. Also,
GTBank is the first organization in Nigeria to obtain and fully implement
these certifications in its operational processes.
Speaking during the presentation of the certificate, Ohis Ohewerei,
Executive Director of GTBank said “The Bank remains committed to following
global practices and standards to ensure our customers enjoy the highest
quality of service delivery, efficiency and convenience at all times. For
us, holding these standards offers stakeholders increased confidence and
ensures effective business continuity management, information security and
information technology service at all levels”.
He further stated that “As a Bank, we are dedicated to preserving the
confidentiality, integrity and availability of all physical and electronic
assets of the bank with the sole objective of enhancing the customer
experience through improved information security. The Bank’s firm
commitment remains centred on providing superior IT service delivery, the
timely resumption of the Bank’s business operations in the unlikely
occurrence of an incident and the protection of its staff and the
organization in its entirety”.
GTBank has consistently played a leading role in Africa’s banking
industry. The GTBank brand is regarded by industry watchers as one of the
best run financial institutions across its subsidiary countries and serves
as a role model within the financial service industry due to its bias for
world class corporate governance standards, excellent service quality and
innovation. The Bank was recently recognized as the ‘Best Bank in Nigeria’
during the 2015 Euromoney Awards.