The Bank of Ghana (BoG) yesterday closed down two forex bureaux at the airport city for flouting the forex exchange rules.
The bureaus are the Airportcity Bureau Forex Limited and Trade House Forex Bureau Limited.
This was after the BoG revoked the licences of the organisation.
Mr Yaw Sapong, Head of other Financial Institutions Supervision Department of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), said the move formed part of measures to stem the depreciation of the Cedi and restore public confidence in the economy.
According to him, the two forex bureaux under the same ownership, had consistently flouted the foreign exchange rules.
The rules, he mentioned, failure to issue electronic receipts, taking the record details of customers and displacing the forex rates.
He said the operations of the two bureaux were detrimental to the forex Bureau scheme and the Ghanaian economy.
Mr Sapong said the mystery shopping the BoG did in recent weeks indicated that the two bureaus were not going by the rules.
“The way they operate and set their pricing is detrimental to the Ghanaian economy and we have no option than to revoke the licences of the two companies,” Mr Sapong, said.
He said the BoG has had several engagements with the owner of the two bureaux, but he had refused to go by the foreign exchange rules.
“We just last month engaged with the owner of the Airport City Forex Bureau Limited and the Trade House Forex Limited to go by the forex exchange rules, but he has failed to go by it,” Mr Sapong, said.
The Head of Other Banking Supervision Department of the BoG urged the public to disregard rumours in sections of the media that people who had dollars in the bank would be forced to take Cedis.
Asked whether the two forex bureaux could reapply for their licences to be restored if the infractions were corrected, Sapong responded that “in our assessment looking at the way the forex bureausx have operated it will be difficult for the shareholders to qualify for a licence.”
BY KINGSLEY ASARE
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