Financial Services

The pension market in Ghana traces its roots to the post-independence Compulsory Savings Scheme of the early 1960s, which was the country’s first nationwide pension scheme. Following several amendments to the system, a 1972 decree created the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), which was charged with the administration of the...

In line with financial markets around the globe, the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) experienced a tumultuous year in 2015, with the GSE Composite Index ending 11.77% lower than at the close of 2014. This was driven by a slowing economy and softening performance in the financial services sector. The financial index, which accounted for less than a...

The Payment Systems Act 662 of 2003 set Ghana on a path towards a system of electronic transactions. The cash-lite initiative envisions a transition from a cash-dependent economy to one that is heavily reliant on bank cards, mobile money, internet payments and other forms of modern cashless transactions. Since the act was passed, the Bank of...

Lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana has slowed in late 2016. In light of rising non-performing loans (NPLs) in 2015, banks have slimmed down their lending books significantly. With interest rates for blue-chip borrowers in established sectors of the economy surpassing 30%, rates for SMEs can often go far higher. This...

Working in concert with the International Finance Corporation, Ghana passed the Credit Reporting Act of 2007, which established licensing and operational guidelines for the credit referencing industry, and obliged financial institutions to share data with licensed credit bureaus. Since that time, Ghana has been slowly building its credit...