The Court of Appeal has ordered the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to restore the operating licence of GN Bank, effectively overturning a previous High Court ruling that had validated the central bank’s revocation of the licence.
In a decisive ruling, a three-member panel of appellate judges directed that all assets belonging to the financial institution be returned to its original owners.
The court also ordered the appointed Receiver to immediately hand over the management of the company to its previous management team.
The Groundwork of the Dispute
The judgment marks a pivotal shift in the protracted legal battle between GN Bank’s leadership and the central bank.
The dispute stems from the controversial banking sector clean-up exercise initiated by the regulator in 2018.
The legal friction began on 4th January 2019, when the BoG reclassified GN Bank as a savings and loans company, which was subsequently renamed GN Savings and Loans Company Limited.
Seven months later, on 16th August 2019, the central bank—under the leadership of Governor Ernest Addison—revoked the company’s operating licence entirely and appointed Eric Nana Nipah as Receiver.
The Initial High Court Defeat
Led by prominent businessman Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, the owners of GN Savings and Loans challenged the revocation in the Accra High Court on 30th August 2019, branding the regulator’s decision as unlawful, malicious, and unreasonable.
However, on 24th January 2024, the High Court, presided over by Justice Gifty Addo Adjei, ruled in favour of the Bank of Ghana.
In that initial judgment, the High Court held that the company had failed to prove it was solvent at the time its operating licence was withdrawn, and that operational and governance deficiencies had rendered the institution incapable of meeting its debt obligations.
Furthermore, the court ruled that the central bank’s intervention was lawful, fair, and consistent with Article 130 of the 1992 Constitution, dismissing claims of targeted discrimination by noting that other financial institutions faced identical regulatory actions during the sector reforms.
The Turnaround
Refusing to accept the High Court’s decision, the management of GN maintained that the central bank had breached existing financial laws.
They subsequently appealed the verdict, culminating in the Court of Appeal’s latest order to reverse the revocation and return the company to its original owners.