The government is taking steps to introduce a new policy that would allow unclaimed balances in dormant bank accounts to be channeled into national development initiatives while safeguarding the rights of account holders.
This announcement was made by Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, in a speech delivered on his behalf by Samuel Akhurst, Coordinating Director (Technical) at the Ministry of Finance, during the Chartered Institute of Restructuring and Insolvency Practitioners (CIRIP) Ghana and Bank of Ghana Non-Performing Loans Forum in Accra.
According to Dr Forson, the proposed framework is currently under review and will be shaped by international best practices to ensure that dormant financial assets are managed with transparency and in the public interest. Crucially, he emphasized that the policy would not affect the ownership rights of account holders, who would still be entitled to reclaim their funds at any time.
“The government recognises the growing global interest in making productive use of dormant financial assets while ensuring that rightful owners can reclaim their funds at any time,” Dr Forson said in his address.
The policy, he explained, would be built on three main principles: protecting ownership rights, ensuring transparency and accountability in managing dormant assets, and using eligible dormant funds strictly in the public interest, backed by robust legal safeguards.
To ensure the policy reflects the interests of all stakeholders, Dr Forson noted that the government would engage in an inclusive consultative process involving regulators, financial institutions, insolvency practitioners, and other professional bodies before finalizing the framework.
On the broader economic front, the Finance Minister highlighted that fiscal discipline, prudent monetary policy, and ongoing structural reforms had contributed to restoring macroeconomic stability. He reported that inflation had declined and exchange rate stability had improved, creating a more favorable environment for business and investment in Ghana.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com