As long as I remain Governor of BoG, none of those revoked banking licenses will be reinstated – Dr Addison

The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr Ernest Addison has reiterated that the licenses of banks revoked during the 2017-2019 financial sector reforms will not be reinstated as long as he remains in office.

In a television interview on Joy News, Dr Addison responded to appeals for the reinstatement of revoked licenses, saying, “as long as I remain Governor, none of those licenses will be reinstated.”

Dr Addison’s statement was in response to questions about the possibility of the incoming government considering the reinstatement of the revoked licenses following appeals by the shareholders of those banks.

Dr Addison emphasised that the decisions to revoke the licenses were made after thorough reviews of the institutions’ operations, many of which were found to have engaged in risky investments and mismanagement of depositor funds.

“These shareholders treated depositors’ money as their own, using it to fund personal businesses or invest in brick-and-mortar projects that were not liquid enough to make resources available when depositors needed their funds,” Dr Addison stated.

The central bank revoked the licenses of nine universal banks, 347 microfinance companies, 39 microcredit companies, 23 savings and loans firms, and eight finance houses during the reform period, consolidating some of these entities under the Consolidated Bank Ghana (CBG) to ensure the continuity of banking services.

Dr Addison emphasised the gravity of mismanagement in the collapsed institutions, noting that such practices fundamentally breached the principles of banking.

“When I give you a banking license, I am giving you permission to take people’s money, not to treat it as your private property,” he said, reiterating that the BoG’s primary mandate is to protect depositors and maintain financial stability.

“These are not numbers we generated ourselves,” Dr. Addison said, referencing data from Ghana’s Statistical Service that confirms the reforms’ positive impact on the financial sector.

He criticised attempts to downplay the reforms’ necessity and warned that any reinstatement of revoked licenses would undermine the sector’s stability.

”A banking license is a special instrument, and the responsibilities it comes with must be taken seriously,” he added.