A man who forged a BoG microfinance license has been sentenced to 8 years imprisonment
A 34-year-old individual has been sentenced to eight years in prison by an Accra Circuit Court for falsifying a Bank of Ghana (BoG) license to operate a microfinance company in Suhum, Eastern region, and its vicinity.
Kofi Asante, also known as Davis, pleaded guilty to the charge of engaging in deposit-taking without proper authorization and received a four-year imprisonment sentence. Additionally, he admitted to the charge of forging an official document, resulting in an eight-year imprisonment sentence. The court, presided over by Joojo Amoah Hagan, ruled that the sentences would run concurrently.
Led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Emmanuel Haligah, the prosecution detailed how the accused, now a convict, had set up microfinance business centers named KM Community Bank and Prym Capital in Suhum and surrounding areas, despite lacking the required licenses. Asante went ahead and gathered deposits from individuals without obtaining the necessary permissions.
The prosecution highlighted that KM Community Bank operated branches in Anum Apapam, Akorabo, and Amanase, while Prym Capital had its headquarters in Suhum. On June 30, 2023, Asante was arrested for investigation, during which documents allegedly issued by the Bank of Ghana in the name of KM Community Bank were discovered in his offices.
Subsequent investigations revealed that Asante had fabricated the Bank of Ghana license between April and January of the same year. He had around 24 individuals working as representatives within Suhum and its surroundings.
During this period, Asante managed to convince approximately 950 people to deposit a total of GHC56,000 daily into his business. When questioned, Asante confessed that neither KM Community Bank nor PRYM Capital were registered by the Office of the Registrar of Companies, nor were they licensed by the Bank of Ghana to conduct deposit-taking activities.
Furthermore, Asante admitted to forging the Bank of Ghana license that was recovered from his office.
Source – citinewsroom.com
