BoG runs to Supreme Court over GN Bank ruling
The legal battle surrounding the controversial revocation of GN Savings and Loans Company Limited’s licence has taken a new twist after the Bank of Ghana (BoG) officially filed an appeal at the Supreme Court seeking to overturn the recent Court of Appeal ruling that restored the company’s operating licence.
According to JOY BUSINESS report, the Central Bank is asking the apex court to set aside the unanimous decision delivered by the Court of Appeal, arguing that the judges erred in law when they proceeded to hear and determine the appeal brought by Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, Coconut Grove Beach Resort, and Groupe Nduom Limited.
The Bank of Ghana further contends that the appellants failed to comply with mandatory provisions under the Court Rules, 1997 (CI 19 as amended), particularly requirements relating to clearly stating particulars of alleged errors of law in their notice of appeal.
The Central Bank also challenged the Court of Appeal’s position that it ought to have considered the report of an advisor it appointed before revoking the licence of GN Savings and Loans during the financial sector clean-up exercise.
In its latest filing, the BoG outlined what it described as several “particulars of error in law” and insists the High Court decision which upheld the revocation of the licence should be restored.
The move marks another major chapter in the long-running legal and political controversy surrounding Ghana’s banking sector clean-up initiated in 2017 under the Akufo-Addo administration.
The exercise led to the collapse, merger, or revocation of licences of several financial institutions over insolvency and regulatory breaches, a process the government argued was necessary to protect depositors and stabilise the financial sector.
GN Bank Limited, owned by businessman and politician Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, was among the affected institutions. On January 4, 2019, the bank was downgraded to a savings and loans company and renamed GN Savings and Loans Company Limited.
However, barely seven months later, on August 16, 2019, the Bank of Ghana revoked its licence entirely and appointed a receiver, Eric Nana Nipah.
Groupe Nduom subsequently challenged the decision in court, arguing that the revocation was unfair, unreasonable, and procedurally flawed. In January 2024, the High Court dismissed the case and upheld the decision of the Bank of Ghana.
However, in a dramatic reversal last week, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal presided over by Justice Jerome Noble Nkrumah, together with Justice Francis Achibonga and Justice Mariama Sammo, unanimously quashed both the High Court ruling and the licence revocation itself.
The Court of Appeal further directed the receiver to hand over possession, management, and control of the company’s assets and operations back to the shareholders of Groupe Nduom.
The latest appeal by the Bank of Ghana now places the matter before the Supreme Court, where the final legal determination is expected to shape the future of GN Savings and Loans and potentially redefine aspects of the financial sector clean-up process.
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