BoG hails Fintechs as architects of new financial order

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has lauded fintech firms, describing them as central architects of a new financial order, with Governor, Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama telling industry leaders that the central bank has now fully embraced its role as a regulator and a cheerleader of the sector’s growth.

Speaking at a breakfast meeting with chief executives of licensed fintech institutions in Accra, Dr Asiama credited the sector with driving a decade of financial transformation that has made Ghana a continental reference point for digital payments, and outlined a regulatory agenda he framed explicitly as enabling rather than restrictive.

Scale acknowledged

The Governor pointed to mobile money interoperability, operational since 2018 and connecting all major operators and commercial banks, as evidence of what deliberate collaboration between innovators and regulators had produced.

The domestic mobile money platform now processes transactions valued at over GH¢4 trillion annually, with full-year 2025 at GH¢4.54 trillion, up from GH¢3.02 trillion in 2024. Consequently, Ghana is widely cited alongside Kenya as one of Africa’s two benchmark digital payments markets. The Governor noted that Ghana’s interoperable instant payment infrastructure was already a reality “whereas it is yet to be implemented in other countries.”

That infrastructure is deepening as well as growing. The transaction value of interoperable mobile money rose 87 per cent over the course of 2025, with volumes up 45 percent on account of expanding cross-network usage between mobile money operators and commercial banks.

“Ghana’s digital financial ecosystem did not evolve by accident. It was built deliberately by entrepreneurs willing to challenge convention, by institutions prepared to modernise, and by a regulator determined to ensure that innovation serves the public good,” the Governor added.

Regulation as enabler

He urged the sector to see regulation not as an obstacle, but as a passport to scale, as the Bank seeks to balance its supervisory mandate with support for innovation-led growth.

Dr Asiama cited a package of recent regulatory actions as evidence of the Bank’s enabling intent, including the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025, which he said was designed to bring clarity and accountability rather than suppress innovation; a new Directive for Digital Credit Services Providers aimed at making digital lending fair and sustainable; and a revised Cyber and Information Security Directive issued in 2026.

He also confirmed that fintechs were being onboarded onto the Financial Industry Command Security Operations Centre (FISOC), a shared cyber defence platform, in recognition that cyber threats cannot be addressed in silos.

He further called on the sector to engage early with the regulator, invest in governance as seriously as in growth, and treat consumer trust as a strategic asset.

Non-negotiables

The Bank further identified three principles he described as non-negotiable at scale, namely, unregulated growth creates systemic risk regardless of intent; that innovation without consumer protection ultimately undermines inclusion; and that speed without safeguards weakens confidence in the financial system.

Ghana’s fintech sector currently comprises over 50 licensed institutions spanning payment service providers, enhanced payment service providers, and dedicated electronic money issuers, serving a population in which mobile money account penetration exceeds 60 percent of adults. The 2025 Global Findex Report places overall financial inclusion at 81 per cent, up from 68 per cent in 2021.

Forward Agenda

Beyond conduct regulation, Dr Asiama outlined an agenda that included open banking, virtual asset integration, cross-border payment innovation, and a diaspora investment corridor supported by blockchain and tokenisation infrastructure. He confirmed that a licence passporting framework with Rwanda was already operational, with two Ghanaian entities having entered East Africa under a pilot.

The Governor also pointed to the 3i Africa Summit — curated by BoG in partnership with the Ghana Fintech and Payments Network and the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems — as a platform for showcasing fintech innovation domestically and internationally.

First Deputy Governor Dr Zakari Mumuni, who delivered welcome remarks at the same event, highlighted how FinTechs have “fundamentally changed the way financial services are delivered in Ghana,” but cautioned that progress remained uneven.

“Many users are still not benefiting fully from credit, savings, insurance, or other value-adding financial products,” Mumuni said, framing continued regulatory engagement as a shared accountability between the Bank and the industry.

“At the same time, we must recognise that progress is uneven. While access to digital financial services has expanded significantly, many users are still not benefiting fully from credit, savings, insurance, or other value-adding financial products,” he said.

Dr Mumuni was however confident that the domestic fintech sector would continue to expand, noting that the Bank of Ghana would keep enabling innovation through support for shared digital infrastructure, stronger digital identity systems, and a regulatory framework that encourages responsible experimentation without compromising trust or stability.

“The countries that will lead the next decade of economic growth are not necessarily those with the most resources, but those with the most agile financial systems, systems built on trust, data, and innovation. Ghana has ambition. You have the ingenuity. And together, we have the resolve,” he told the FinTech CEOs.

Meanwhile, Ghana retained its position as the world’s top-ranked country for mobile money regulation, scoring 96.10 per cent on the 2025 GSMA Mobile Money Regulatory Index; the second consecutive year it has held that position.