The nation’s leading business publication, the B&FT, is today – Tuesday, April 23, 2024 – assembling a heavyweight contingent of financial sector players for The Money Summit 2024 to brainstorm and provide practical measures to tackle diminished investor confidence and rekindle a mindset of savings and investment.
At the prestigious La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, the summit will focus on ‘Investing for the Future: Re-thinking Investment and Savings to Drive Economic Growth and Development’. This timely event comes amid concerns about the country’s savings culture, especially as Ghanaians have historically tended to spend a larger portion of their income compared to saving and investing.
This low savings rate, currently hovering marginally above the sub-Saharan African average but bettered by some of the regional peers and significantly below the global benchmark, hinders capital development and business growth.
Additionally, the recent financial sector clean-up and the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) have eroded some investor confidence.
The issue will be tackled head-on across two plenary sessions. The first session on ‘Accelerating Savings and Investment Climate for Sustainable Economic Growth: Ethical Standards and Professionalism Are Key’ will feature prominent figures like Akwasi Adu-Boahene, Executive Director of Fidelity Securities Ltd.; Allen Quaye, Head of Retail Banking at FBN Bank; and Ankit Tandon, Director of FX Sales at Regulus Investment & Financial Services Ghana Ltd.
Others are Dr. Rejoice Wodomdedzi Foli, consultant, banker and UN Peace Ambassador; and Dr. Gabriel Odeh Apotey, Vice President of the Chartered Institute of Financial & Investment Analysts, Ghana. Discussions will be steered by the B&FT’s Ebenezer Chike Adjei Njoku and centre on rebuilding trust with investors after the DDEP, ensuring ethical practices in the financial sector and mobilising excess liquidity to fuel private sector growth.
The second session – Digitalisation of Money: Re-thinking Financial Electronic Transactions for Economic Growth – will focus on the opportunities and risks of digital finance.
Experts like Sam Donkor, Chief Business Officer at Letshego Ghana; Nana Yaw Owusu Banahene, Regional Head of Africa Partnerships at AZA Finance; Dr. Richmond Kwame Frimpong, Advisory Board Chair of Financial Literacy Africa; Eric Kwaku Mensah, Lead of Financial Crimes & Anti-Money Laundering at e-Crime Bureau; Robert Dzato, CEO of Chartered Institutes of Bankers, Ghana; and Cherie Griffith-Dunn, Founder and CEO of Cyproteck Inc CGD LLC. will explore strategies for measuring and regulating digital money to ensure financial sector stability.
Cybersecurity threats and risk mitigation will also be a key area of discussion. This session will be moderated by Richard Nunekpeku, the Managing Partner at Sustineri Attorneys PRUC. He is also the Vice President – Legal & Strategy for the Ghana Fintech and Payment Association (GFPA).
“The Money Summit is the perfect platform to address the critical issues hindering Ghana’s savings and investment culture. By fostering open discussions, promoting ethical practices and embracing the opportunities of digital finance, we can collectively build a more robust financial future for us all,” Dr. Godwin Acquaye, CEO of the B&FT emphasised.
The summit boasts a line-up of prominent financial institutions as sponsors, including Fidelity Bank – headline sponsor, Letshego Ghana, Regulus Finance, and FBN Bank. Media partners such as Asaase Radio, Happy FM and TV3 will ensure widespread coverage of the event. “The Money Summit 2024 promises to be a catalyst for change in Ghana’s financial landscape. The event presents a valuable opportunity to gain insights, network with industry leaders and contribute to a thriving economy,” Dr. Acquaye added.
