Month: May 2020

UT BANK CASE: GIVE AMOABENG ALL DOCUMENTS – COURT TO AG

Banks | Matilda Akakpo | May 28, 2020 | Comment off

The Attorney General has been asked by the court to give all the evidence it intends to rely on in the case against the founder of the defunct UT Bank, Mr Prince Kofi Amoabeng, who is on trial in connection with the collapse of the bank. Justice Philip Bright Mensah, a Justice of the Court of Appeal who sat as a High Court judge, ordered the AG on Thursday, 28 May 2020, to serve Mr Amoabeng and four others with all the necessary documents. The Attorney General has up to June 22 to file the disclosures and serve them on the defense team. Chief State Attorney Frances Mullen Ansah told the court on Thursday that his side was working to have the trial documents filed and served on the accused persons with the initial June 23 adjournment date in mind prior to the abridgement of time. In February, Mr Amoabeng and five others were slapped with 42 charges by the state. The charges came after an Accra Circuit Court on, Wednesday, 5 February 2020 dropped all the earlier charges against him. The five others include Johnson Pandit Asiama (2nd Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BOG) between May 2016 and December 2017), Raymond Amanfu (Head of Banking Supervision Department (BSD) at BOG from 2014 to October 2017), UT Holdings Ltd. (company which held shares in UT Bank Ghana Limited (UT).), Catherine Johnson (Head of Treasury who had also acted as the Head of Corporate Banking of UT.) and Robert Kwesi Armah (General Manager of Corporate Banking of UT). Police Prosecutor, ASP Emmanuel Nyamekye had earlier told the Circuit Court Judge, Emmanuel Essandoh that the state intended filing a fresh case against Mr Amoabeng at the High Court. To this end, he said the trial of Mr Amoabeng at the Circuit Court was no longer necessary. The businessman was arrested together with Mr Michael Nyinaku of the now-defunct Beige Bank and charged for mismanaging their banks which led to their collapse.

READ MORE

DEFUNCT CAPITAL BANK’S ATO ESSIEN WILLING TO REFUND GH¢27.5M TO THE STATE – LAWYERS

Banks | Matilda Akakpo | May 21, 2020 | Comment off

Embattled founder of the defunct Capital Bank, Ato Essien, is willing to refund GH¢27.5 million back to the state, his lawyers have said. Willaim Ato Essien is standing trial for allegedly collapsing the bank. The GH¢27.5 million is what the state has accused Essien of using as business promotion and which he allegedly carried in jute bags to be distributed to some people. The online news website of the state-owned Daily Graphic newspaper reports that the Counsel for Mr Essien, Baffour Gyewu Bonsu, told an Accra High Court on Thursday that his client had already paid GH¢1.4 million of the GH¢27.5 million to the state. According to the report, Mr Essien’s attorney said discussions are still ongoing with the prosecution, hence, the court should adjourn the case to enable the discussions to continue. The prosecutor, Mariana Appiah Oppong, a Chief State Attorney, confirmed to the court that lawyers for Essien had indeed informed her about their intention to pay the amount. “She, however, said the lawyers must bring a detailed proposal to the Director for Public Prosecution (DPP) and after a review the DPP would make a determination to accept it or not,” Graphic.com reports. Presiding Judge, Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour, has given Mr Essien’s attorneys one month to send the proposal to the DPP for hearing to continue on June 18, 2020. Mr Ato Essien and three others became the first to be hit with criminal trials over the banking crisis last year. All the four accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against them. The Founder of the defunct Capital Bank, William Ato Essien; the Managing Director of the bank, Fitzgerald Odonkor, and two other persons — Tettey Nettey, the Managing Director of MC Management Services, a company said to be owned by Essien, and Kate Quartey-Papafio, a businesswoman and Managing Director of Reroy Cables Company Limited — have been put before the Accra High Court on 26 counts. They are facing charges of stealing, abetment to stealing, conspiracy to steal and money laundering.

READ MORE

UPDATE – RECEIVER TO PAY OUTSTANDING LOCKED UP FUNDS AFTER 2ND LEVEL VALIDATION IN MAY 2020 – GOV’T

BOG | Matilda Akakpo | May 7, 2020 | Comment off

The Receiver of the defunct Microfinance companies and savings and loans firms is set to complete a second level of validation processes to pay all affected customers whose funds were locked up after the licenses of those institutions were revoked by the Central Bank. The Minister of Information, Hon. Kwadwo Oppong Nkrumah as part of his press briefing today, May 7, 2020 updated on behalf of Mr. Eric Nana Nipah, the Receiver of the defunct 347 Microfinance Companies and 23 Savings & Loans and Finance House Companies that this exercise will finally be completed by May 2020. SEE UPDATE BELOW: Out of the top claim’s worth approximately GHS6.4 billion that was received at the close extended deadline for the submission of claims for these organizations: 347 Microfinance companies, 39 Microcredit companies, 23 Savings and Loans and Finance House Companies, legitimate claims admitted for processing and payment after validation, on the region of GHS5.66 billion. The approximate GHS740 million difference between the total claims received and value of the legitimate claims admitted for processing and payment was due largely two main reasons: Invalid claims which were rejected and Setoffs and cross lending, that is some depositors who are either taking loans from some of these same entities or had in their custody placement from some of these resolved companies. What the Receiver has validated to pay is GHS5.66 billion. Now based on those validations, the Receiver, Special Liquidator has commenced work on some GHS5.32 billion leaving an amount GHS340 million that is going through the very final processes of second level checks. Payments made to date Depositor payments are made in forms, that is in cash and by way of zero coupon rated bonds. Approximately GHS2.11 billion has been paid in cash while about GHS2.95 billion has been paid in bond bringing total payment to GHS5.06 billion. Based on total cash payment to be made by the end of depositor exercises, it is expected that the population of individual depositors numbering about 297 thousand whose claims have been validated and accepted in the resolution of the aforementioned groups of companies and not less than 290 thousand which is about 98% of individual claims be fully paid in cash. The remaining 2% individual depositor claims will be paid by combination of cash and bonds. Next step on payment The Receiver is first of all concluding the depositor payment process and the key next step to be undertaking are as follows: The Receiver will conclude the final second level of validation of GHS340 million and make payment accordingly. It is expected that this should be fully completed by the end of May 2020. There are some of the organizations whose book records still have challenges; those institutions are being processed for further investigations. The Receiver will finally submit a report to Bank of Ghana (BoG) on depositor payment scheme.

READ MORE