The Bank of Ghana has cautioned the public against scammers who are pretending to be “foreign investors” and promising high sums of money in return.
According to the central bank, these scammers are using a number of platforms and making promises to induce unsuspecting victims to invest.
It said in a statement that the invitation to members of the public to deposit monies with these “foreign investors” amounts to deposit taking business under Section 4 of the Banks and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930). Therefore, under section 4 of Act 930, only a body corporate licensed by the Bank of Ghana may carry out the business of deposit-taking.
“By this Notice, the Bank of Ghana hereby informs the public, that the Bank has not licensed any entities or individuals engaged in such spurious “foreign investments”. The said individuals or entities in question, commit an offence and shall be penalised and required to refund all funds received”, it noted.
In addition, it pointed out that such individuals or entities will be liable to 500 – 100,000 administrative penalty units in line with section 53(3) of Act 1044. Furthermore, any individual or entity that engages in such unlawful practices should be reported to the law enforcement agencies for investigation and prosecution, in accordance with sections 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Act 1044.
The central bank also urged the public to verify with the regulator or other relevant authorities, the licensing status of an individual or entity before depositing funds.
Secondly, the members of the public are reminded to place deposits only with accountable institutions licensed by the Bank of Ghana, in order that they may be accorded the protection available under the banking laws
The Central Bank also advised all media outlets including radio, television and online channels not to permit the advertisement of these illegal individuals or entities on their platforms. T
“The media is encouraged to verify the licensing status of such individuals or entities with Bank of Ghana, before advertising their products and services”, it concluded.
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