Bank of Ghana Governor, Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama, has urged banks to place ethics, accountability and strong governance at the centre of their digital transformation efforts, warning that technological advancement without trust and integrity could expose financial institutions to significant risks.
He said while digitalisation was changing the way banking services were delivered, institutions must ensure that innovation does not compromise customer protection, financial stability and public confidence.
The Governor made the remarks in an address to the Chartered Institute of Bankers, Ghana’s 30th National Banking and Ethics Conference, held at Aqua Safari Resort on November 9 and 10. The address was delivered on his behalf by the Bank of Ghana’s Director of Communications, Bernard Otabil.
Held under the theme, “Banking on the Future: Trust, Technology and Transformation”, the conference examined the growing role of technology in banking and the need to maintain public confidence as financial institutions embrace new ways of delivering services.
Dr Asiama stressed that trust must remain central to the banking industry, noting that although technology can improve efficiency, reduce transaction costs and expand access to financial services, these benefits depend largely on how responsibly institutions operate.
He pointed to Ghana’s financial-sector clean-up between 2017 and 2019 as a reminder of the consequences of weak corporate governance and unethical practices. Poor risk management, insider dealings and misconduct by some directors and senior managers, he said, contributed to the collapse of several financial institutions.
He cautioned that even banks with adequate capital, liquidity and sophisticated technology could remain vulnerable if their leadership lacked integrity and internal controls were ineffective.
The Governor also raised concerns about growing cybersecurity threats, stressing that protecting financial institutions must go beyond investing in technical systems.
Citing the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 Annual Report, he identified vulnerabilities across the sector, including weak security configurations, inadequate protection of public-facing systems, stolen login credentials and the takeover of active user sessions.
He said these threats required banks to strengthen their internal controls, train employees and ensure that boards and senior management took cybersecurity seriously.
The Bank of Ghana’s Financial Industry Command Security Operations Centre, which provides threat intelligence to 23 banks, is part of efforts to improve the sector’s ability to respond to cyber threats. However, Dr Asiama maintained that individual institutions must also take responsibility for securing their systems and protecting customers.
He further highlighted concerns surrounding the use of customer information and artificial intelligence in banking, particularly in areas such as credit assessment, customer profiling and fraud detection.
According to him, banks must ensure that automated systems do not produce biased or discriminatory outcomes and that customers’ privacy, consent and personal information are adequately protected.
He called for ethical considerations to be incorporated into the design and development of digital products rather than introduced after the services have been deployed.
On virtual assets, including cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and tokenised financial products, the Governor said innovation must be encouraged while addressing potential threats such as money laundering, terrorist financing, cybercrime and market abuse.
He cited the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025 (Act 1154), as an important step towards regulating the emerging sector.
Dr Asiama also urged banks to look beyond the introduction of new digital platforms as a measure of transformation. He said genuine transformation required stronger operational resilience, investment in human capital, improved business models and the capacity to manage emerging technological and financial risks.
He added that banks must move away from an excessive focus on short-term profitability and embrace responsible banking practices that create sustainable value without undermining customer welfare and financial stability.
The Governor reaffirmed the Bank of Ghana’s commitment to strengthening its supervisory approach to address emerging risks associated with digital finance, cybersecurity, financial crime and the growing relationship between banks and technology providers.
However, he stressed that regulation alone could not guarantee ethical conduct within financial institutions.
“No supervisory framework can replace the responsibility of institutions to act with integrity,” he said.
He therefore called on boards and senior management to take greater responsibility for promoting ethical cultures, enforcing internal controls and ensuring that their institutions remained accountable to customers and the wider economy.
Dr Asiama maintained that the future of Ghana’s banking industry would depend not only on how quickly institutions adopted new technologies, but also on their ability to uphold the trust and integrity on which the sector depends.
