An investment company, Onward Investment Limited, is contesting the Bank of Ghana’s decision to halt its operations from engaging in on-line foreign exchange trading.
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) in an earlier statement said Onward Investment Limited was not licensed to take monies from the public and ostensibly engage in on-line foreign exchange trading. The company promised interest rates of 25% for a trading cycle of 42 days In December 2011.
The company in an interview with Citi Business News admitted that its board of directors did not receive authorisation to take deposits, but maintained it did not engage in the online foreign exchange trading illegally.
“As far as we know, Onward has a certificate to commence business and we also had our VAT certificate so we were paying SSNIT but when you read the statement BoG has brought out, it says we have not been given permission to take in deposits as well as online foreign exchange trading but we know that this is not regulated by the Central Bank,” Nana Gyantoa, the Public Relations Officer of Onward Investment Limited said.
The Bank of Ghana ordered the arrest of some officials of Onward Investment Limited for further investigations and promised possible refunds to investors who fell victim to the company’s operations by selling off the company’s assets.
Several weeks down the line investors are still worried about when they will receive their monies back.
Gyantoa said: “For now, I cannot tell whether they will be getting their monies back with interest. And also most of the employees of Onward Investment are also victims because they have also invested in the company.”
He hoped the Bank of Ghana will quickly tell them when exactly the monies of the company will be released to them.
The Bank of Ghana has since warned investors those interest rates, equivalent to over 300 per cent per annum, such as those offered by Onward Investment Ltd. are not realistic and therefore not sustainabl