The Bank of Ghana has totally dismissed unlearned claims that it could not account for $11.6 billion worth of foreign remittances over the last two years because that money was largely withheld by newly licensed Money Transfer Operators (MTOs) and 11 Fintech companies.
Per reports by sections of the Ghanaian media, the World Bank tracked $21.1 billion in remittance to Ghana between 2018 and 2022, while the Auditor General’s report on the Bank of Ghana’s consolidated statements of foreign exchange receipts and payments accounted for only $9.5 billion, leaving a gap of about $11.6 billion.
The reports added that the Bank of Ghana’s 2023 annual financial statement reveals that 11 licensed FinTech companies provided inward remittance services, with remittances totaling GH¢57 billion (US$5 billion) in 2023, up from GH¢18 billion (US$3 billion) in 2022, which the BoG could not account for.
In response to the claims, the central bank said it does not license MTOs as the reported suggested because MTOs are based abroad and they facilities remittance into Ghana.
“The [Central] Bank, however, conducts due diligence on MTOs who partner local banks and/or FinTechs to deliver remittances into Ghana as part of the authorisation process,” it added.
“Furthermore, all remittance inflows are credited to the nostro account of partner banks of Payment Service Providers (PSPs), as such, no PSP holds any forex inflows from inward remittances. The partner bank credits the local cedi accounts of PSPs for onward transfer to beneficiaries.”
“Based on the above, the assertion that the country has lost US$8 billion in the last two years (i.e, US$ 5 Billion in 2022 and US$3 Billion in 2023) based on FinTechs and MTOs withholding same at the expense of the country’s foreign currency reserves is misleading and not grounded on facts,” it said.
The Bank of Ghana additionally dismissed claims that Ghana operates two foreign exchange systems.
“Ghana does not operate two foreign exchange systems. Both banks and FinTechs who engage in inward remittance services do regularly submit prudential returns to the Bank of Ghana as part of their regulatory obligations.
“Banks and FinTechs have the responsibility of complying with the Foreign Exchange Act, 2006 (Act 723) and other legal and regulatory requirements.”
It is also important to note that the World Bank has explained that its $21.1 billion included estimates beyond actual receipts that went through the banking system, so the two figures are not comparable.
Moreover, BoG has not licensed or authorized any commercial banks and FinTechs to do outbound remittance from Ghana so the country is not losing foreign currency via the regulated financial sector.
