We Haven’t Lost $8b over Withheld Remittances- BoG
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has refuted claims that the country has lost US$ 8 billion in the past two years- US$ 5 billion in 2022 and US$3 billion in 2023- as a result of withheld inward remittances.
It was reported that newly licensed Money Transfer Operators (MTO) and 11 Fintech Companies have withheld an amount of GH¢18 billion in 2022 and GH¢57 billion in 2023 at the expense of the country’s foreign currency reserves.
This, it was reported, has cost the country some $8 billion but has been disputed by the Central Bank as false and misleading.
On the contrary, the Bank says it has recorded a consistent increase in remittance inflows year-on-year.
Additionally, it noted that it is not responsible for licensing MTOs since such companies are based abroad.
“The Bank, however, conducts due diligence on MTOs who partner with local banks and/or FinTechs to deliver remittances into Ghana as part of the authorisation process.
“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.”
