347 dead MFIs: EOCO chases missing assets

The Receiver for the 347 collapsed microfinance companies, 23 saving and loans firms and some finance houses, Mr Eric Nipah, has revealed that the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has stepped in to trace assets of the dead firms that cannot be located.

The Receiver, a Partner at PwC, indicated that due to dubious transactions, EOCO has been invited to conduct an investigation and trace the assets of the firms.

"We are optimistic that with the asset tracing exercise that EOCO is undertaking, there would be retrieval of assets for us to sell and use the proceeds to pay the customers," Mr Nipah said while lamenting: "A lot of these companies are 'asset-less' in terms of the fact that there's virtually nothing there."

He told Emmanuel Oscar Ugoh, a freelance journalist that a total of GHS1.9billion is owed customers of the various firms.

Mr Nipah announced that some GHS 835 million provided by the government will be used to offset part of the debt while the balance will be cleared using proceeds from the sale of assets retrieved by EOCO.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) revoked the licences of the insolvent firms including GN Savings and Loans belonging to businessman Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom on Friday, 16 August 2019.

The central bank then appointed Mr Nipah as the Receiver for the specified institutions in line with section 123 (2) of Act 930.