By Joshua Worlasi AMLANU
The central bank has warned that cyber threats are fast undermining progress in financial inclusion, as digital fraud incidents soar and systemic vulnerabilities in the country’s financial system persist.
Digital fraud incidents in the country have surged significantly in recent times, with financial losses from cyber fraud reaching GH₵4.4million in the first quarter of 2025 alone, nearly doubling the GH₵2.4million lost during the same period in 2024.
Speaking on behalf of Governor Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama at the Africa Inclusion Policy Initiative (AfPI) roundtable in Accra, First Deputy Governor Dr. Zakaria Mumuni said more than 21,000 cyber fraud attempts were recorded in Ghana’s financial sector in 2022 alone, mostly targeting digital platforms. The growing threat, he said, is eroding public trust and could reverse the continent’s inclusion gains.
“Cybercrime is not a distant risk—it is a present danger,” Dr. Mumuni said, underscoring that “financial inclusion without system integrity is unsustainable.”
The deputy governor emphasised that cybersecurity can no longer be seen as an IT issue, but must be treated as a strategic imperative for financial governance.
Interpol estimates that cybercrime costs Africa over US$4billion annually. The rapid expansion of digital financial services, particularly mobile money, has deepened inclusion across the continent; but has also created new entry points for fraud and operational risks.
In Ghana alone, mobile money accounts now exceed 70 million, introducing millions of first-time users into the formal financial system.
BoG has responded with a series of regulatory and supervisory initiatives. In 2018, it issued one of Africa’s earliest cyber and information security directives for financial institutions.
Currently, over 40 institutions are connected to the Financial Industry Security Operations Center (FINSOC), enabling real-time threat detection and response. The bank also conducts annual cybersecurity maturity assessments based on global frameworks such as NIST and COBIT 5.
Those assessments, however, continue to reveal significant gaps.
“In 2024, over 40 percent of assessed entities showed critical vulnerabilities—especially in access controls and incident response,”Dr. Mumuni noted.
To address this, the BoG is executing targeted interventions in partnership with Ghana’s Cybersecurity Authority, the World Bank, Interpol and the Africa Cyber Security Resource Center.
The bank is also strengthening consumer protection measures in the face of mounting complaints over failed transactions, fraud and service disruptions. New disclosure standards, as well as expanded complaint resolution systems and financial literacy initiatives, especially for women, youth and underserved communities, form part of this effort.
Civil society groups, schools and religious organisations are also being enlisted to promote digital safety and awareness at the grassroots level.
“We believe financial inclusion must be built on trust—trust in the system, trust in providers and trust that grievances will be addressed fairly and safely,” Dr. Mumuni said.
Gender-inclusive finance is another area of focus. Ghana recently joined the African Development Bank’s AFAWA initiative, which helps financial institutions unlock credit for women entrepreneurs.
In addition, the government has committed over GH¢51million in seed funding for a newly launched Women’s Development Bank, targeting credit access for women-led businesses in agriculture, trade and tech.
Dr. Alfred Hannig, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), also spoke at the event and echoed these concerns, noting that cybercrime has increased by nearly 150 percent in Africa over the past year. Reported financial losses are running into billions of dollars.
“Cyber threats are escalating to systemic levels,” Hannig said. “They’re targeting core financial infrastructure and threatening to undo years of progress in financial inclusion.”
He emphasised that low-income individuals are particularly vulnerable, with the potential to lose their savings in an instant if safeguards are not strengthened.
AFI is now integrating cybersecurity as a central pillar of its regional work plan under AfPI. The organisation is pushing for coordinated cross-border responses through intelligence-sharing, regulatory harmonisation and collective crisis management.
The central bank is calling for regional cooperation and global engagement in standard-setting fora like the Financial Stability Board and the G7 Cyber Experts Group.
“Let us embed cybersecurity into our inclusion strategies—not as an afterthought, but as a foundation. Resilience in one country protects us all,” Dr. Mumuni said.
