Report any financial breaches to the Central Bank – BoG to public
No financial institution must charge maintenance fees on saving accounts – BoG
The Bank of Ghana has cautioned financial institutions against quoting interest rates on a monthly, daily or other basis apart from the annual rates.
According to the banking sector regulator, the act is rather unlawful and financial institutions must desist from doing so.
In a statement issued on the abolition of unfair fees, charges and other practices, the Bank of Ghana also said the act of charging maintenance fees on saving accounts is also illegal on the part of financial institutions.
The central bank then admonished customers to be on the lookout for these illegal debit alerts on their accounts and report such unapproved charges and debits by their various financial institutions.
The statement further said additional services which include transaction alerts, internet banking and others which are offered by financial institutions will likely attract certain fees and charges on customers accounts.
It therefore urged customers to ‘always assess your needs before subscribing’ to these additional services.
In addition to these points, the central bank said financial institutions must desist from charging any penalty fees especially when customers walk into the banking hall to withdraw funds from their own account or make an over-the-counter transaction.
“Your request for your account balance from the Banking Hall of your financial institution should not attract any fee or penalty. In case of any breach”, the Bank of Ghana stated.
“It is unlawful for a financial institution to effect a change in legal title of your asset (vehicle, landed property etc.) used as collateral into the joint names of the financial institution and yourself or into the name of the financial institution or any third party,” it added.
In conclusion, the banking sector regulator called on customers to report any breach to the Bank of Ghana for the necessary action to be taken.
The Bank of Ghana Headquarters