Business News of Saturday, 16 January 2016

Source: ultimate1069.com

Scam Microfinance Companies lied to customers - BoG

Mr. Raymond Amanfo, BoG Director of other Financial Institutions Supervision Department Mr. Raymond Amanfo, BoG Director of other Financial Institutions Supervision Department

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has revealed that the microfinance institutions that scammed hundreds of customers in the Brong Ahafo Region lied to their clients.

According to the Central Bank, even though these financial institutions were somewhat licensed by the bank to operate, they deviated from their core mandate which has resulted in the current situation where several persons are unable to retrieve their investments.

Mr. Raymond Amanfo, Director of other Financial Institutions Supervision Department of the BoG in an interaction with aggrieved customers and various stakeholders in Sunyani on Friday, stated that most of these microfinance companies resorted to deception in order to win the confidence of their clients.

He took the opportunity to educate the customers on how these institutions came into being and also revealed that the central bank is not in custody of investments of clients as some of them were made to believe.

Meanwhile, some customers indicate that their concern is how they will be able to get back their money, describing the interaction as immaterial.

According to them, what the bank should concentrate on is to start attaching property of the owners of the scam microfinance organizations in order to sell them off to defray part of the money they owe clients.

In attendance at the interaction was the Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Traditional rulers and various stakeholders who have all been affected as a result of the operations and closure of the microfinance organizations.