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Sagnarigu, Ghana – The Northern Regional Minister, Shani Alhassan Saibu, has urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Ghana to intensify its campaign to clamp down on unlicensed investment schemes operating through various social media platforms.
According Mr. Saibu, the SEC and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) recent investigation work, and further warning of the public to stay away from some 17 unlicensed investment schemes mostly operating on Facebook, was commendable.
Such proactive measures, he observed, would go a long way to reduce the number of people who fell victim to such fraudulent activities of Ponzi and pyramid schemes.
“It is important for anyone venturing into any sort of business to conduct proper due diligence before starting the business as well as be cautious of scammers. Likewise, it is equally important for anyone seeking to invest in any investment scheme to do proper due diligence before committing hard earned money to it,” he cautioned.
He urged the public to make use of the various channels of communication including telephone numbers, social media, emails and online portal made available by the SEC to engage them on any challenges they have regarding investments in the capital market.
The Minister said these when he delivered a speech at a one-day SEC conference organized at Sagnarigu Municipality in the Northern Region.
Director-General of the SEC, Rev. Ogbarmey Tetteh, however in his speech explained, that the SEC had undertaken a few actions aimed at strengthening the capital market.
“In 2019, we took the step to revoke the licenses of some failed asset management companies just to make sure that the operators within that space are fit and proper. We have strengthened our collaboration with the various law enforcement agencies and just recently together with EOCO we issued a statement on some unlicensed schemes.
Then also we have come up with a ten year capital market master plan with a blue print for developing the capital market in Ghana. We have set in motion the implementing machinery to make sure that the initiatives, the objectives contained in the capital market master plan are realized.”
Rev. Tetteh added: “I can talk about issuance of various guidelines in particular the licensing guidelines which emphasize a lot on the fit and proper principle just to make sure that those who are in the market are fit and proper which also has increased the minimum capital required all geared towards ensuring that those who are allowed into the space have what it takes to deliver. Then I can also cite in terms of regulations of guidelines that we have issued, the conduct of business guidelines which deals with corporate governance issues within our market operators largely because without good corporate governance there can be a lot of challenge in any corporate entity.”
The conference which was under theme: “The role of the SEC in the capital market” was held to empower the public with information that would enable them to leverage the potential of the capital market in raising capital for business and growing savings through investors.
It was to let the public know that the capital market was not reserved for a select few but for everyone willing and able to pay the price of getting relevant knowledge in order to make informed choices regarding their money matters, be it individuals, families or the corporate.
The conference was also to underscore the fact that the capital market was a regulated activity and in Ghana the SEC was the regulator with the mandate to regulate and promote the growth and development of an efficient, fair and transparent securities market in which investors and the integrity of the market are protected.
By SavannahNewsOnline.Com/Joseph Ziem
