'There’s no evidence of money laundering in Ghana' – EU

The European Union (EU) says there is no evidence of money laundering in Ghana following the blacklisting of Ghana by the Union in May 2020.

Head of Delegation of the EU to Ghana, Ambassador Diana Acconcia to has explained that Ghana has been blacklisted because it failed to put some checks in place to forestall money laundering.

“There is no evidence of money laundering in Ghana,” she told Accra-based Asaase Radio Monday.

Also reacting to reports on the directive by the ING Bank in Belgium for Ghana’s embassy there to close its accounts with the bank, Ambassador Acconcia said “The fact that the account of the Embassy of Ghana in Belgium and the European Union has been closed by a Belgium Bank, that was a business decision taken by the bank. The bank was not at all obliged by the EU to close the account of the Embassy.”

She added: “It was a business decision to apply more checks to the Embassy. The listing does not affect trade, development aid and there will be no problem in paying the budgetary support and the main projects we have in Ghana…. Ghana is doing a lot already because there is the Financial Intelligence Center at the Central Bank among others to check some of these things.”

Background

Ghana’s Embassy in Belgium capital Brussels, has been ordered by its banker to withdraw all its money so that the bank will proceed to close the embassy’s accounts.

The ING Bank has not given basis for the decision but says it is irreversible. The embassy has up to November 12, 2020, to withdraw all its money to another bank.

Ghana’s Mission in Brussels has four accounts with the bank. They are:

1. Main Euro Account, a current account,

2. Main Euro Account, a business account,

3. Special collections account,

4. Retention Fund account, which is used for the internally generated funds of the embassy.