The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued the first credit rating licence to an indigenous company in Ghana, which will allow for an independent evaluation of the creditworthiness of debt securities on the Ghana Fixed Income Market. This will be a boost to development of the corporate bonds market, given that corporate bond issuers must find a rating agency to rate...
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, together with Governor Harvesh Kumar Seegolam, Governor of the Bank of Mauritius, have signed an historic Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Port Louis, to deepen the existing ties of engagement between the two central banks. The objectives of the MOU are to establish an arrangement for the exchange of...
The number of registered internet banking customers declined by 7.88%, from 1,106,270 in 2019 to 1,019,073 in 2020, the 2020 Payments Systems Oversight Annual Report has indicated. However, registered mobile banking customers increased by 12.30%, from 4,245,479 in 2019 to 4,767,719 in 2020. The report further indicated that the value of internet banking transactions increased significantly by 101.50% to ¢24.21...
The increase in Policy Rate by the Bank of Ghana will have a mixed impact on the Ghanaian economy, Economist, Dr. Adu Owusu Sarkodie has told Joy Business. According to him, whilst rising inflation and recent exchange rate pressures will be tamed, the expected rate of economic growth will reduce. The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Ghana yesterday adjusted...
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications, Kenneth Ashigbey, has asked government to increase the electronic transaction levy’s exemption threshold to ¢200 per day. He said that will enable many micro and small companies that use mobile money to continue using the service. “From the way they want to implement it [the e-levy], it is going to...
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has tasked the banking community to be proactive in developing specific digital products for different types of customers with the introduction of the e-cedi. Speaking at the 25th National Banking Conference under the theme, “The Digital Economy of Ghana, the Strategic Role of the Banking Industry” Dr. Bawumia said, the launch of Ghana’s universal QR...
Economic activity shot up in the third quarter of 2021 as the Bank of Ghana’s updated Composite Index of Economic Activity (CIEA) recorded an annual growth of 11.2% in September 2021, compared with 10.8% and 4.2% in the corresponding periods of 2020 and 2019, respectively. According to the Monetary Policy Committee report, economic activity during the third quarter continues to...
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of Ghana has increased its Policy Rate – the rate at which it lends to commercial banks by 100 basis points (1%) to 14.5%, citing risks to inflation, exchange rate as well as fiscal and debt sustainability challenges. It’s the first time since 2015 that the MPC has increased its key lending...
A Financial Analyst, Martin Kwame Awagah, says, Ghana’s financial technology (fintech) sector has numerous prospects that investors can tap into to increase customer reach and profit. The prospects, which cut across every sector of the economy with the services sector being major beneficiaries, he said, presented economic gains to the country, including augmenting financial inclusiveness. Speaking at a virtual...
Ghana’s banking sector remains “well-capitalised, liquid, and profitable, backed by strong buffers to support the recovery process”, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has said. Presenting the 2022 budget to parliament on Wednesday, 17 November 2022, Mr Ofori-Atta said: “Banks reported a strong balance sheet position as of end-September 2021, albeit with marginal declines in the annual growth rates of some key...
