The Bank of Ghana has given rural and community banks and microfinance institutions up to February 2020 to meet their respective minimum capital requirements.
The Bank of Ghana in 2015 announced an upward revision to the minimum capital requirements of rural/community banks to GH¢1 million to be met by December 31, 2017.
Also, the central bank gave the microfinance institutions up to June 2018 to meet the GH¢2 million capital requirements.
A notice issued to these institutions by the Bank of Ghana on Monday, August 19, 2019, suggests that some institutions have still not met these deadlines many months after they elapsed.
The bank in its notice directed all institutions to meet their respective minimum capital by 28th February 2020.
“Pursuant to Section 28(1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act 2016 (Act 930) and Section 11 of the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Act, 2008 (Act 774), Rural/Community Banks and Microfinance Institutions which fail to comply with their respective minimum capital by the above date shall be sanctioned.
Shareholders, Directors, Operators of Rural/Community Banks and Microfinance Institutions are to take note of the above and be guided accordingly,” the BoG noted.
The central bank has between August 2017 and August 2019 shut down 420 financial institutions in its clean-up of the sector.
