A report by the Institute for Liberty and Policy Innovation (ILAPI), has uncovered the huge sums of money sitting in a large number of dormant accounts with the Bank of Ghana (BoG).The report says that there exists with the BoG, over GH167. 8 million in local currency and over US$14.6 million in dormant accounts.Also, there is also over £ 2.4 million and € 2.3 million, accumulated between 2016 and 2023.
Again, between 2021 and July 2024, dormant accounts transferred to the BoG stand at 1,448, 660.This was unearthed in a document made available to ILAPI by the BoG after the latter was petitioned to provide a comprehensive report on the sums collected from inactive accounts over the period of 8 years (2016 - 2024).
ILAPI's Next of Kin (NOK) project has been running since 2023.The concept of the NOK as a point of contact, and beneficiaries to access funds of the dead at financial institutions go beyond legality.ILAPI said in the report that they believe some of these funds could belong to the deceased who died in road traffic accidents, floods, and among others, and in most cases families are unaware.Funds that could have taken children, spouses, and families out of poverty are kept with the regulated financial institutions, and Bank of Ghana in the name of dormancy.The Laws do not permit the BoG to trace families to help them access funds of the dead, the report noted.It is important to recall that some of these beneficiaries depended on their deceased relatives for education and economic survival.
Therefore, their inability to access the funds denote they have to drop out of school and strive to survive on their own, which could push them into social vices and poverty."It is also evidence that the Bank of Ghana has made strides in educating the public on the importance of appointing a next of kin and the relevance of next of kin on financial documents, which is commendable.