In order to facilitate international trade and act as an intermediary for the transfer of cash to and from Ghana, the Ghana Commercial Bank established the Ghana International Bank (GHIB) in the city of London in 1959. The two parties have now negotiated a £5.8 million settlement (FCA).
After looking into GHIB's anti-money laundering (AML) procedures over its correspondent banking activities between 2012 and 2016, the FCA fined Ghana. According to GHIB, it "accepts full responsibility for its prior shortcomings and has agreed to pay a civil penalty of £5,829,900.00 in accordance with the provisions of the agreement."
change in leadership
According to a statement from GHIB dated 23 June 2022, the FCA underlined in its conclusions that GHIB has now made considerable measures to address the issues.
"It also said that GHIB and its top management had cooperated with the regulator in an open and honest manner, advising the FCA of its AML flaws among other things. Additionally, it should be underlined that no proof was discovered showing that GHIB had assisted in money laundering or any other financial crime, according to the GHIB statement.
According to the GHIB statement, the bank "has hired a fully new Board, including three new independent non-executive directors, and is also under new management with a new CEO, COO, CRO, and MLRO since the period under examination. Additionally, GHIB has improved its AML systems and controls, added a better risk management framework, and hired more people, especially for important control and regulatory roles.
a fresh approach
"GHIB takes its compliance with anti-money laundering requirements extremely seriously and we are glad to have agreed to a settlement with the FCA over these past problems," said Dean Adansi, Chief Executive of GHIB, as stated in the release.
We've put a lot of money into our risk management systems and controls, and we've developed a solid team within the bank.
"Under new leadership, GHIB is a fundamentally different bank today, with a robust balance sheet and the backing of its key shareholders, and we are looking forward to serving our clients as the bank of choice and trusted partner in Africa," the bank's statement reads.
The GHIB announcement also includes a quotation from Dr. Ernest Addison, the chairman and governor of the Bank of Ghana, emphasising that; "GHIB offers financial institutions and businesses in Ghana and the region essential correspondent banking services."
"The bank has undergone a transformation in the last several years, and GHIB has never been in a better place than it is right now.
The strategic investments GHIB has made in its personnel, infrastructure, and operational procedures, along with its most recent recapitalization, will support the bank's crucial function in the Ghanaian economy.
A GHIB
In order to facilitate international trade and act as a middleman for the transfer of monies to and from Ghana, the Ghana Commercial Bank established a branch in the City of London in 1959. In 1998, Ghana International Bank (GHIB) was established in the UK to handle The bank, which is now held by a group of significant Ghanaian financial institutions with the Central Bank of Ghana as the primary stakeholder, is authorised and governed by the Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority.
Treasury and global markets, trade finance, corporate and institutional banking, retail and small business banking, correspondent banking, and payment solutions are the six main sectors on which GHIB concentrates today.
The bank's primary objective, however, continues to be to help the economies of Ghana and the larger African continent.