Year: 2020

SALE OF LANDED PROPERTIES, CHATTELS AND USED VEHICLES

BOG‚ Uncategorized | Matilda Akakpo | July 9, 2020 | Comment off

IN THE MATTER OF THE BANKS AND SPECIALISED DEPOSIT-TAKING INSTITUTIONS ACT, 2016 (ACT 930)   IN THE MATTER OF THE RECEIVERSHIPS OF THE 347 MICROFINANCE COMPANIES AND THE 23 SAVINGS & LOANS AND FINANCE HOUSE COMPANIES NOTICE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC SALE OF LANDED PROPERTIES, CHATTELS AND USED VEHICLES OF THE 347 MICROFINANCE COMPANIES AND 23 SAVINGS & LOANS AND FINANCE HOUSE COMPANIES  (ALL IN RECEIVERSHIP) As you may be aware, pursuant to Section 123 (1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930), Bank of Ghana (“BoG”) on 31 May 2019 and 16 August 2019 revoked the operating licenses of 347 insolvent Microfinance Companies and 23 Savings and Loans and Finance House Companies respectively. BoG in accordance with Section 123(2) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930) appointed Eric Nana Nipah, a Director of PricewaterhouseCoopers Ghana Limited (“PwC”), as the Receiver for the purposes of winding down the affairs of these institutions. A key component of the Receiver’s mandate is to secure all assets of the resolved companies and maximise their realisations for the benefit of creditors. Accordingly, the Receiver wishes to inform the general public that he is requesting for firm bids from potential buyers to acquire some Landed Properties and Motor Vehicles of the resolved companies for his evaluation. Due to the current Corona Virus (Covid-19) Pandemic, all interested bidders are required to visit the Receiver’s website to view pictures of the available for sale Landed Properties and Motor Vehicles using the following link www.ghreceiverships.com. Please note that the pictures are grouped according to the current location of the Landed Properties or Motor Vehicles, i.e. Kumasi, Takoradi and Accra. All interested bidders should submit their bids in a signed and dated formal letter, scanned and attached in an email addressed to the following email address, clearly indicating the item(s) of asset(s) they are interested in and the bid amount for each asset: vehicletender.receivership@gmail.com Please note that all bids which fall short of the above requirement will be rejected. All bids are to be submitted on or before Friday, 31 July 2020.  Conditions and Payment Modalities:   Highest bidder shall be the purchaser Winners will be notified and will have 48 hours to make payment or lose the opportunity. “As is where is” For further information please contact the Receiver’s duly authorised representatives: Nicholas Anum on 0243390044 and Wilfred Tackie on 0249889540. SGD ERIC NANA NIPAH

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NOTICE TO ALL BORROWERS AND LOAN DEFAULTERS

BOG | Matilda Akakpo | June 23, 2020 | Comment off

The receiver for 347 collapsed Microfinance companies and 23 Savings and Loans and Finance House Companies in a statement issued to the general public, person/persons/institutions who took loan facilities from these defunct companies are to visit any of the maintained branches of these institutions for repayment of the loans immediately. “Notice to all Borrowers and Loan Defaulters,” the statement added IN THE MATTER OF THE BANKS AND SPECIALISED DEPOSIT-TAKING INSTITUTIONS ACT, 2016 (ACT 930) AND IN THE MATTER OF THE RECEIVERSHIPS OF THE 347 MICROFINANCE COMPANIES AND THE 23 SAVINGS & LOANS AND FINANCE HOUSE COMPANIES NOTICE TO ALL BORROWERS AND LOAN DEFAULTERS Pursuant to Section 123 (1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930) (“the Act”), Bank of Ghana (“BoG”) on 31 May 2019 and 16 August 2019 revoked the operating licenses of 347 insolvent Microfinance Companies and 23 Savings and Loans and Finance House Companies respectively, and in accordance with Section 123(2) of the Act appointed Eric Nana Nipah, a Director of PricewaterhouseCoopers Ghana Limited (“PwC”) as the Receiver for the purposes of winding down the affairs of these Companies. Section 127 (3) of the Act mandates the Receiver to realise all assets of the resolved companies, including outstanding loans and advances, for the benefit of creditors. Accordingly, the Receiver wishes to notify the general public especially person/persons/institutions who took loan facilities from these defunct companies to visit any of the maintained branches of these institutions for repayment of the loans immediately. (for a list of the maintained branches, please visit the Receiver’s website: www.ghreceiverships.com) Customers may settle their outstanding obligations to the defunct companies through the respective MTN MoMo numbers and/or receivership bank accounts listed on the adjacent tables. The Receiver would like to entreat all borrowers to cooperate with his authorised representatives/agents in this regard. Borrowers are to note that, the Receiver will pursue all recalcitrant defaulters through all available means as permitted by the Act including, but not limited to, legal actions and publishing names of recalcitrant defaulters in national and international newspapers. In this regard, the Receiver will soon publish the first list of recalcitrant defaulters and their respective addresses in the national dailies. Please note that the working hours for the maintained branches of the defunct companies remain from 8:00am to 5:00pm, Mondays to Fridays. For further information on the Loan Repayments, please call 024 243 9441/ 0550000966. You may also write to the; The Receiver, 25 B Manet Towers PMB CT42, Cantonments Accra, Ghana www.ghreceiverships.com SGD ERIC NANA NIPAH

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PAYMENT WON’T STOP PROSECUTION AGAINST YOU – AG TO ATO ESSIEN

BOG | Matilda Akakpo | June 18, 2020 | Comment off

The Chief State Attorney, Marina Appiah Opare, has said the plan by Mr. Willaims Ato Essien, CEO of the defunct Capital Bank, to pay the funds will not stop the trial from proceeding since the negotiation will affect only four of the charges. He and three others are facing 26 charges for various roles they played leading to the collapse of Capital Bank. The Attorney General on Thursday, June 18, 2020, rejected the repayment terms submitted by Ato Essien, who is standing trial for the collapse of the bank. Ato Essien wrote to the Attorney General’s Office for a payment plan. But Ms. Marina Appiah Opare told an Accra High Court on Thursday, June 18, 2020, that the agreement was “totally unacceptable”. She said the terms were not favorable to the State. The trial judge, Justice Kyei Baffour, after hearing the case, adjourned proceedings to July , 2020, saying should the State fail to reach an agreement, the case will proceed.  

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COURT GRANTS BOG STAY OF PROCEEDING IN GN SAVINGS AND LOAN CASE

Uncategorized | Matilda Akakpo | June 3, 2020 | Comment off

The Court of Appeal has by a unanimous decision granted the Bank of Ghana’s application for stay of proceedings in the GN Savings and Loans case in the High Court (Human Rights Division). All three Justices’ decision is pending the determination of the central bank’s appeal at the Court of Appeal against the decision of the High Court to hear the case brought by shareholders of GN Savings and Loans. The effect of the Court of Appeal’s ruling today is that the proceedings filed at the High Court by shareholders of GN are for now suspended. The Chairman of Groupe Nduom, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, sued the BoG and two others over the revocation of the license of GN Savings and Loans Company Limited. The suit, which was filed jointly by Coconut Grove Beach Resort and Conference Centre Limited and Groupe Nduom (GN) Limited, is challenging the decision of the central bank to declare GN Savings and Loans Company insolvent leading to the revocation of its operating license. The suit is challenging the issue of insolvency claim by the BoG, saying contrary to the central bank’s claims, a fair, truthful, just and independent assessment of GN Savings and Loans’ books would show it was very solvent “and particularly, that the value of Gold Coast’s government infrastructure project portfolio, running in excess of ¢2.2 billion in addition to other assets available to Groupe Nduom, could support the GN Savings and Loans to far exceed the value of its liabilities.” Reliefs Among the reliefs being sought by the plaintiff include a declaration that by failing to take into account the indebtedness of the government of Ghana and its MDAs to Groupe Nduom, Gold Coast Advisors Limited or GN Bank, before concluding that the savings and loans company was insolvent and, consequently, revoking its specialized deposit-taking license, violates their rights. They also want an order of certiorari, quashing the decision in the notice issued by BoG which declared GN Savings and Loans Company insolvent and, consequently, revoked its license to operate as a specialized deposit-taking institution. Again, the suit is seeking an order on BoG to restore to the company its license to enable it to continue operating as a specialized deposit-taking institution. It also wants an order on the receiver of the company “to submit the possession, management or control of the assets, operations and other activities of the company to its shareholders or persons who, immediately before August 16, 2019, were in possession, management or control of such assets, operations and activities.”

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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.

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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.

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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.

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DEFUNCT BANKS CEOs CASES GET MAY ADJOURNMENT

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

The Trials of owners and heads of defunct banks whose actions allegedly led to the banking crisis in recent years have been adjourned to latter parts f May due to restrictions imposed on the courts as measures to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 19 persons who were involved in the running of the banks have been charged before different division of the Accra High Court for their alleged involvements in misapplication of funds of their respective banks. UniBank Former Finance Minister Dr Kwabena Duffour, founder of defunct UniBank Ghana Limited, and eight other officers of the bank are in court from their alleged ‘dishonest’ spending of over GHS5.7 billion belonging to customers and investors of the insolvent private bank. Among the accused persons charged is the former 2nd Deputy Government of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, under whose watch over GHS450 million was allegedly doled out to uniBank, without following laid-down procedures according to the Attorney General’s Department. Dr Duffour, Dr Asiama, Kwabena Duffour II, Ekow Nyarko Dadzi-Dennis, Elsie Dansoa Kyereh, Jeffrey Amon, Benjamin Ofori, and Kwadwo Opoku Okoh are facing a total of 68 charges, including fraudulent transaction and money laundering, but they have all pleaded not guilty to the charges. Capital Bank The Founder and Chief Executive Officer of defunct Capital Bank, Ato Essien, the bank’s former Managing Director, Fitzgerald Odonkor, together with Tetteh Nettey, a former Managing Director of MC Management Service owned by Ato Essien, as well as a businesswoman, Kate Quartye Papafio, are before the court charged with 26 counts of conspiracy to steal, stealing, and money laundering. The four are alleged to have misappropriated a total of GHS620 million liquidity support given to the bank by the BoG to enable it to service its maturing debt. The accused persons, according to the state, opened various bank accounts with Capital Bank through which the GHS675 million BoG liquidity support was transferred to, while others were carried in jute bags to Ato Essien as payment for business promotion. UT Bank Former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of insolvent UT Bank, Prince Kofi Amoabeng, and five others have been charged for their alleged conducts, leading to depositors of the bank losing money. The businessman and Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama, as well as four of his former employees, are before the court facing some 42 charges, including causing financial loss to the state. Mr Amoabeng is alleged to have transferred the investment some 15 companies totaling GHS51,334,387.08 and $8,799,917 from UT Bank to UT Holdings, a company he owns, without the knowledge and consent of the investors. Dr Asiama, on the hand, is accused of allegedly causing financial loss to the state by approving GHS460 million liquidity support for UT Bank, without following laid-down procedures. Apart from Mr. Amoabeng and Dr Asiama, other persons charged are Raymond Amanfu, former Head of Banking Supervision Department (BSD) at BoG from 2014 to October 2017; UT Holdings Limited  (UT Holdings); Catherine Johnson, former Head of Treasury who had also acted as the Head of Corporate Banking of UT and Robert Kwesi Armah, a former General Manager of Corporate Banking of UT. Adjournment The case involving Ato Essien, and others was to begin with the prosecution led by Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Yvonne Atakora-Obuobisa, set to call its first witness, but the Covid-19 restrictions affected the process. The other cases are at pre-trail stages as the Office of the Attorney General is taking steps to disclose all the documents it intends to rely on for the trial. The cases have all been adjourned to late May 2020 as a result of the restrictions. Source: Daily Guide, Thursday April 28, 2020  

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