Panellists at a seminar on digital finance have called for stronger regulatory oversight to keep pace with the country’s rapidly expanding financial technology (fintech) industry.
They said while innovation was unlocking new opportunities, it also posed growing risks that required effective supervision, compliance, and public education.
The panellists were a Chief Technology and Ops Officer at Standard Chartered Bank, Sheikh Jobe; the Deputy Manager of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), Sean Henry Osei and a Fintech Examiner at the Fintech and Innovation Office, Bank of Ghana (BoG), Kwadwo Darko Botwe.
They were speaking at the “Leading Fintech Seminar" organised by Precept on the theme: “Transforming the Digital Finance Landscape in Ghana,” held in Accra.
Balance
Mr Osei stressed that the success of fintech hinged on striking the right balance between innovation, consumer protection, and financial integrity. He cautioned that while virtual assets, tokenisation, and digital currencies presented great promise, they also opened new pathways for money laundering, terrorism financing, and data breaches if left unregulated.
He said the country had made progress in creating frameworks to address these threats, but enforcement continued to be the weakest link.
“I'm all up for innovation and fintech, I'm all up for it, but I'm looking at how we work around the risks based on what we are hoping to achieve; how big we are dreaming, with our existing challenges, how we will be looking at working around those risks,” he said.
Mr Osei, therefore, urged regulators to deepen collaboration with the private sector to ensure compliance and build confidence in the safety and integrity of the country’s financial system.
Risk management
Mr Botwe from the Bank of Ghana stated that the nation’s regulatory institutions had taken bold steps to manage risks associated with fintech innovations.
He cited the drafting of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill before Parliament and ongoing efforts to improve institutional and public digital literacy. He said the central bank was also leading a National Virtual Asset Literacy Initiative to build capacity among regulators and the public.
However, he admitted that compliance and enforcement challenges persisted, calling for stronger coordination between regulators and industry players to ensure the fintech ecosystem remained transparent, secure, and aligned with national financial objectives.
Harmonisation
Mr Jobe emphasised the importance of harmonised regional standards to support cross-border fintech growth while safeguarding data and consumer rights.
He observed that the country was well placed to lead digital finance harmonisation efforts in West Africa but needed clear rules, robust institutions, and sustained investment in research and capacity building.
He underscored the need to build public trust through awareness creation and simplified Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures to promote financial inclusion. With closer collaboration between regulators and innovators, he said, the nation could consolidate its position as a leading digital finance hub in the sub-region.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS), Clara B. Arthur, said fintech should be seen as an enabler rather than just a sector.
She emphasised that the country was already living the future of financial technology, with rapid innovations in digital payments, open banking, blockchain, and artificial intelligence reshaping financial services.
Ms Arthur said the fast-evolving ecosystem challenged all stakeholders to innovate continuously and collaborate meaningfully.
“Every day we wake up, there's some new technology going about, and we all have to innovate around that. But as we come together, I just want to take this opportunity to acknowledge that we are learning from one another, sharing ideas, and building meaningful partnerships together,” she stated.