The Bank of Ghana has cautioned the public against unlicensed individuals and entities falsely presenting themselves as foreign investors.
The Bank of Ghana has alerted the public to the activities of fraudulent actors posing as foreign investors, luring unsuspecting individuals with promises of high returns, actions that directly violate Ghana’s financial regulations.
In a notice titled “Scam Alert – Illegal Foreign Investors in Ghana,” the Bank highlighted that these schemes often involve unauthorized deposit-taking, a practice strictly prohibited for unlicensed entities under Section 4 of the Banks and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
The Bank stressed that it has not licensed any individual or entities to operate such foreign investment schemes and cautioned that participating in these activities constitutes a criminal offense.
Offenders may be subject to administrative penalties ranging from 500 to 100,000 penalty units, as outlined in Section 53(3) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2020 (Act 1044).
To safeguard themselves, the public is advised to:
•Verify the licensing status of any individual or entity before depositing funds;
•Transact only with financial institutions licensed by the Bank of Ghana;
•Report any suspicious activities to the Bank’s Financial Stability Department or relevant law enforcement agencies for further investigation and possible prosecution.
The Bank further warned media outlets against promoting these illegal schemes, advising radio, television, and online platforms to “verify the legitimacy of financial advertisers before broadcasting their content.”
In its final remarks, the Bank of Ghana urged all Ghanaians to remain vigilant and avoid becoming victims of such fraudulent activities.
