The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has directed financial institutions in the country to desist from the payment of any dividend of whatever form to their shareholders.
The Central bank says the decision is to ensure that the banks are in good shape to assist customers through the period of the pandemic.
“In furtherance of the above, and to ensure that banks and SDIs are better able to support their customers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, to absorb any potential operational losses for banks and SDIs from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bank of Ghana now directs that all banks and SDIs desist from declaring and/or paying any dividends or distributing reserves to shareholders, and from making any irrevocable commitments regarding the declaration or payment of dividends to shareholders, until further notice.
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“For the avoidance of doubt, shareholders in this context means holders of Common Equity Shares (CETI) and Additional Tier I (AT1) capital instrument of banks and SDIs,” the bank said.
