The Bank of Ghana has appointed an adviser for Sovereign Bank Limited to oversee its operations.
The Central Bank explained in a statement that it made the appointment due to some governance and capital challenges the bank is battling with.
“Sovereign Bank was licensed by the Bank of Ghana as a universal bank in January 2016. As part of its supervisory functions, the Bank of Ghana completed an on-site examination of the bank in December 2017. The outcome of the on-site examination revealed some governance and capitalization challenges which needed to be addressed.”
“The Bank of Ghana has a range of powers under the Banks and Specialized Deposit Taking Institutions Act of 2016(Act 930) to take prompt remedial action to address supervisory concerns it identifies in a regulated institution. One of such powers is to appoint an adviser under section 101 (1) of Act 930 that will advise an institution’s management,” the statement indicated.
The adviser will among others help monitor the bank’s recapitalization efforts and implementation of governance reforms as agreed by the Bank of Ghana, while furnishing it with a status report on the bank frequently.
The adviser, unlike the official administrator will not take over the responsibilities and duties of the bank’s shareholders’ directors and management.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Ghana has assured customers of Sovereign Bank that their deposits are safe.
The appointment of an adviser for Sovereign Bank, follows the takeover of uniBank and the appointment of KPMG as an administrator by BoG, as well as the purchase of UT and Capital banks by GCB bank over governance and capital challenges.
Source: citinewsroom
