Daily Archives - August 16, 2022

Rural banks urged to leverage GhanaPay for growth

Rural and Community Banks (RCBs) have been urged to embrace and leverage the opportunities associated with the new GhanaPay service to grow their fee incomes so as to consolidate growth and development. The GhanaPay is a mobile money service provided by universal banks, rural banks, and savings and loans companies to individuals and businesses. It is somewhat a mobile money...

UBA gets new Group MD & Executive Board

United Bank for Africa Plc., Africa’s global bank, has announced the appointment of Oliver Alawuba as Group Managing Director, overseeing all the group’s banking operations across its twenty African country network and globally in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France, and the United Arab Emirates. Oliver Alawuba joined UBA in 1997, and has held a series of...

Cyber-Crime Unit cautions ‘MoMo’ users to be vigilant of fraudsters

The cyber-crime unit of the Ghana Police Service is warning mobile money subscribers to be wary of fraudsters as electronic payment channels gradually become the new normal. Detective Daniel Ofori urged mobile phone users to be vigilant and report suspicious conversations to their network operators and the police for further action. “When you think the conversation doesn’t correspond to what you have, you can...

Use Ghana Card as ID in securities market – SEC –

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked all new investors and market operators to use the Ghana Card as the only identity card for all transactions in the Securities Market.. However, in the case of existing investors, the Ghana Card will be the sole identity card for all their transactions effective January 1, 2023.. SEC in a statement indicated that...

Fraud costs banking industry US$67bn annually ; Two institutions commit to support country’s banks

The boom in digital payment platforms and digital banking systems have come with its own risks and cost to the financial industry. Latest figures from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) indicaties that the global financial industry loses about US$67 billion to fraud related activities annually. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) also reports that about US$1.6...

WhatsApp banking is a game changer for financial institutions – Perry Addo-Quaye

Perry Addo-Quaye, Regional Director at Network International, a leading digital payment solutions provider, is confident WhatsApp banking is the game changer that will present traditional financial institutions the opportunity to improve on financial inclusion and provide services to the underbanked. He stressed that access to financial services is a critical driver of economic and social development and that WhatsApp banking...

BoG To Begin Local Gold Purchase From September 1

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is to implement a Gold Purchase Programme designed to purchase locally-produced gold in the quest for stronger macroeconomic management and in providing a bulwark for the Cedi next month. The date was agreed when the Economic Management Team, the Central bank, Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Minerals Commission and PMMC met with the Ghana...

Inflation rises further to 31.7% in July 2022; Transport major driver

Year-on-year inflation crossed the 30% mark to hit 31.7% in the month of July 2022, data from the Ghana Statistical Service has revealed. This is the highest inflation rate recorded since late 2003. However, the rate of inflation slowed down in the month under review, as inflation went up by 1.9% over that of June 2022 (29.8%). According to the GSS, the...

Survey: Banks will continue to tighten private sector credit

In the coming months, banks will continue to tighten their stance on credit to the private sector, results from the latest Bank of Ghana (BoG) credit conditions survey have shown. This, according to the central bank, stems from the increase in lending rates and general uncertainty surrounding performance of the economy stemming from sharp depreciation of the Ghana cedi and...

Ghana Central Bank to reject £20 and £50 paper notes from August 31

The Bank of Ghana has directed all banks and financial institutions in the country to reject all British £50 and £20 paper notes effective 31st August 2022.  The directive comes after the Bank of England in the United Kingdom declared that the two paper banknotes will no longer be legal tender starting in October this year, because they have been...