High Court quashes revocation of CDH licence by BoG, refers parties to arbitration

An Accra High Court has quashed the decision of Bank of Ghana (BoG) to revoke the license of CDH Savings and Loans Company Limited and referred the parties to resort to arbitration.

His Lordship Justice Sam Brew, in his ruling, said per Article 23 of the 1992 Constitution, administrative bodies were required to act fairly and reasonably.

Article 23 of the 1992 Constitution stipulates that:

“Administrative bodies and administrative officials shall act fairly and reasonably and comply with the requirements imposed on them by law; and persons aggrieved by the exercise of such acts and decisions shall have the right to seek redress before a court or other tribunal,” the Court ruled.

Hence the BoG, by giving CDH two weeks to dispose of their assets, was unreasonable and unfair.

The Central Bank per a Notice dated August 16, 2019, revoked the license of CDH Savings and Loans Company Limited to operate as a specialised deposit-taking institution.

The Bank in the said Notice stated that CDH failed to sell repossessed collaterals, thereby, causing liquidity challenges, which resulted in the company’s inability to meet withdrawal requests from numerous depositors.

The shareholders of (CDH Financial Holdings Limited) in August 2019 initiated a court action against the BoG seeking some reliefs.

The Plaintiff (CDH) sought an order of certiorari for the Court to quash the Notice dated August 16, 2019, which declared the CDH insolvent and revoked its license to operate as a Specialised Depot-Taking Institution.

It also sought an order of interlocutory injunction restraining the respondent, their agents, assigns, privies, hirelings or otherwise how so ever from interrupting with the operations of the CDH Savings Loans Company Limited; and also to refer the subject-matter of this instant action to Arbitration.

The CDH also sought for any further order(s) as the court may deem fit upon the grounds set out in the accompanying affidavit and other processes, which shall be duly filed.