Introduction: After reading the succinct analysis on the above subject matter by Samuel Alesu-Dordzi, I am inclined to break my usual norm as a passive observer, to respond for the first time on this “going-places” portal (Ghana Law Hub). A Deposit Protection Insurance as my learned friend espoused is to do inter aliathe following; “provide the...
Category: Banking and Finance
Ghana’s Banking Crisis: The Deposit Protection Angle
The recent collapse of 7 commercial banks has generated a lot of interest and discussions. In spite of these discussions, not much has been said about the deposit protection angle to this matter. This article, therefore, considers the role of a functional deposit protection scheme in averting a banking crisis and taking care of the...
What is Money?
Messrs Twumasi Ankrah and Nartey in different articles concerning the legal consequences of the operation of Menzgold Ghana Limited were unanimous on one point: that money goes beyond funds and cash. Both of them relying on the Black’s Law Dictionary came to the conclusion that the word ‘money’ in the context of the Banks and...
Deposit-Taking or Not: The Curious Case of Menzgold Gh Ltd and The Dilemma of the Bystander
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) in furtherance of its supervisory powers under the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930) has embarked on a ‘house’ cleaning exercise within the banking and financial sector with the aim of, among others, sanitizing and bolstering confidence in the sector. This exercise has led to the BoG...
Who Should Regulate Menzgold – BOG or SEC?
In November 2017, the Bank of Ghana (BOG) via notice[i]cautioned the public against transacting business with Menzgold Ghana Company Limited (Menzgold). The notice further stated that anyone who continues to transact business with the company “does so at his or her own risk, and the Bank of Ghana will not be liable to such clients...
Are the Directors of the Failed Banks in Serious Trouble?
The conversation relating to the August 1, 2018 announcement of the ‘collapse’ and so-called ‘consolidation’ of the five banks[1]went from taking stock of the intensity of what had happened and quickly veered into what ought to be the personal liability of the directors and management involved with these banks. Over the rest of the week...
What, in Law, has Happened to the Five Collapsed Banks?
While the majority of players and stakeholders in the financial space welcome the recent Bank of Ghana (BOG) intervention regarding the recent the ‘collapse’ of the five banks[1]and the creation of the new Consolidated Bank Ghana Limited (CBG), this move has generated some uncertainty over the legal dimensions of the regulator’s intervention. In the news, we have...
Overview of Ghana’s Deposit Protection Scheme
2016 was a challenging year for the Ghanaian Banking sector. Reports of microfinance institutions folding up were rife. “Owners” of these financial institutions were disappearing mysteriously. The hard-earned savings of many were in jeopardy. Something had to be done. The then President, John Dramani Mahama in his State of the Nation Address (Delivered on Thursday,...
Overview of BOG’s Corporate Governance Directives
Banking in Ghana began in the 1890s when Standard Chartered Bank (Ghana) Limited established its first branch in Accra. This was followed by the opening in 1917 of a Barclays Bank branch. Until 1953, these two banks were the only commercial banks operating in the country. Then the Bank of the Gold Coast was set...
Unibank vs UT Bank and Capital Bank: Spot the Difference?
The Bank of Ghana (BOG) on March 20, 2018, appointed KPMG as “official administrator” of Unibank Ghana Ltd (“Unibank”). According to the BOG, the appointment of the official administrator is to save Unibank from imminent collapse and prevent losses to depositors and creditors. This is the second time the BOG has intervened in the operations...