The Receiver for some 347 microfinance companies, 23 saving and loans firms and some finance houses which were collapsed by the Bank of Ghana a few months ago, has revealed that the firms have financial obligations to their customers totaling GHC1.9 billion.

Mr Eric Nipah, a partner at consulting firm PwC, revealed that the clients’ claims are being processed at the 96 operating branches out of the 675 that existed before their closure due to economic reasons.

“People are owed a combined amount of GHS1.9 billion and, therefore, it would be insensitive to continue to run such a huge operation spending so much money when people are not going to be fully paid,” he told freelance journalist Emmanuel Oscar Ugoh in an interview.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) revoked the licences of the insolvent firms including GN Savings and Loans belonging to businessman Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom on Friday, 16 August 2019.

The central bank then appointed Mr Nipah as the Receiver for the specified institutions in line with section 123 (2) of Act 930.

According to Mr Nipah, he was “appointed a Receiver as a Partner-Director of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)”. He added that it is an industry practice to ensure personal accountability hence “all over the world, all insolvencies are run by individuals and not companies".

Some officials of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) had accused Mr Nipah of working to sabotage the government. However, the Receiver debunked such accusations maintaining that he is not working with the opposition to make government unpopular but conducting his work professionally.

"Not at all! I am a professional. I am nonpartisan. I am a Partner-Director of PricewaterhouseCoopers, a reputable professional services firm and we work professionally," he stated.

Mr Nipah expressed his eagerness to round up the receivership exercise saying: "Given all the worries on my mind, the whole of Ghana’s descended on me I can't wait to finish and we are working assiduously to finish as soon as we possibly can."