Struggling Ghanaian Banks tasked to Submit Merger Plans Ahead of Recapitalization Deadline

The Central Bank of Ghana has directed struggling banks which are unable to meet the ¢400 million recapitalization to submit their merger proposals for consideration.

Governor of the Bank, Dr Ernest Yedu Addison said the move will enable the regulator put measures in place for such banks to strengthen their operations with other banks after the December 31, 2018, deadline.

Speaking on CNBC at the AFDB Annual meetings in Busan, South Korea, he said Bank of Ghana (BoG) has tasked the banks, “that are not able to raise that capital should come together in the form of mergers.

“We are ready to accept an indication of how you intend to put yourself together to meet that minimum capital requirement.”

According to him, the idea is not to say that these banks should completely merge by the deadline given but he explained that “there are operational capital difficulties in doing that, integrating the IT system, staff, and all of those things.

“Those are operational issues that can be dealt with in the longer time frame.”.

According to the Governor, it is up to the struggling banks to show their commitment to merge as he reiterated that the deadline won’t be extended.

“We just want the banks to come up with the indication that, this is what we are planning to do. These are the banks that are planning to come together and then the rest will be implemented over a longer period,” he added.