According to a report released by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Ghana’s banking sector and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDI) experienced a reduction in financial fraud, with losses amounting to approximately GH¢56 million in 2022. This represents a 7.88 percent decrease compared to the GH¢61 million recorded in 2021.
However, despite the decline in financial losses, the number of attempted fraud cases in the banking and SDI sectors increased. In 2022, there were 2,998 reported cases of fraud, marking a 27.74 percent increase from the 2,347 cases recorded in 2021.
The 2022 trends and statistics report covers the period from January 1 to December 31 and highlights the major fraud typologies impacting financial institutions. The top five fraud typologies identified were forgery and manipulation of documents, fraudulent withdrawals, cheque fraud, cyber/email fraud, and cash theft (cash suppression).
Forgery and manipulation of documents emerged as the most prevalent fraud typology, resulting in the highest loss of GH¢33 million. Money fraudulently withdrawn from customers’ accounts accounted for GH¢7 million in losses, with the Central Bank noting that many of these cases involved bank and SDI staff. Cheque fraud, particularly stemming from cloned cheques, led to a loss value of GH¢5 million.
The report revealed a decrease in fraud cases involving staff, dropping from 278 cases in 2021 to 188 cases in 2022. Cash theft (cash suppression) from customers’ accounts was highlighted as a common fraud typology within the Rural and Community Banking sector.
While staff involvement in fraud remains a concern, the report stated that the numbers have started to decline due to strict sanctions imposed by the Bank of Ghana and efforts by sector institutions to improve controls.
To combat the rise in fraudulent cases and mitigate losses, the BoG directed banks to promptly report fraud cases to both the Bank of Ghana and the Ghana Association of Banks. This sharing of information aims to raise awareness among financial institutions and prevent recurrence. Banks and SDIs were also instructed to enhance fraud sensitization efforts among their customers and regularly review their risk management and internal control frameworks to detect and prevent fraud and other financial crimes.
Additionally, the Bank of Ghana urged banks and SDIs to report financial crimes, including cases of cash theft (cash suppression), to the Ghana Police Service and provide updates to the central bank until the cases are resolved.
The release of the fraud report by the Bank of Ghana serves to inform the general banking public about prevailing fraud trends. It also outlines the measures being implemented by the central bank to address fraud and uphold the integrity of Ghana’s banking system.