Unsuspecting Ghanaians fall prey to fraudulent investment schemes
Tizaa Ghana Fund not licensed or regulated by SEC
Financial institutions warned against accepting crypto transactions
In recent times, many people especially the youth and businessmen have lost huge sums of money to scammers. This is because they pumped their monies into unlicensed businesses in unlicensed
These companies, although not legit, mostly use celebrities or well known individuals as ambassadors, thereby leading unsuspecting Ghanaians astray.
With ponzi schemes, these fraudulent investment firms pay existing investors with funds collected from new investors. They usually lure people into the cycle by convincing them of earning more.
On the other hand is cryptocurrency trading where these scammers work with their syndicate to dupe unsuspecting investors.
Due to these emerging issues and more, the central bank has made it clear that cryptocurrencies are unapproved for trading in Ghana.
Currently, the Bank of Ghana and the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) have issued statements warning the public and investors to desist from trading with Tizaa Ghana Fund, Sidicoin, Freedom coin, among other cryptocurrencies.
Inasmuch as cryptocurrencies [Bitcoin, Doge coin, Ethereum, Apecoin and so on] are widely used in forex trading, it remains unregulated in Ghana.
Don't do business with 'Tizaa Ghana Fund' - SEC warns investors, public
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on January 15, 2022 cautioned investors and the general public against doing business with Tizaa Ghana Fund.
A statement issued by the Commission said the Fund has not been licensed to perform any activities in the capital market.
Prior to SEC's caution, Tizaa Ghana Fund was offering a 50% return on investments to clients within 10 days.
The minimum entry capital was GH¢100 and a maximum of GH¢300,000.
According to reports, Tizaa Ghana had registered over 37,000 people in 3 weeks and operated on Telegram.
BoG cautions against new cryptocurrency Sidicoin
On April 27, 2022, the central bank issued a press statement to warn Ghanaians
against a new cryptocurrency, Sidicoin which is set to be launched soon.
It stated categorically that the investment scheme has not been licensed and given the greenlight to operate in Ghana.
“Bank of Ghana has taken note of the impending launch of a cryptocurrency investment scheme named “SIDICOIN”. The public is hereby cautioned that neither this investment scheme nor the Promoters of the company have obtained the approval of Bank of Ghana, to operate in the banking and payment services sector,” part of the release read.
'Freedom coin' not licensed to operate in Ghana - BoG
Just like the others stated above, Freedom coin was also shown as a red flag.
A statement from the Bank of Ghana noted that it has not licensed the operations of any cryptocurrency under its laws.
“The public is hereby cautioned that neither this cryptocurrency nor the promoting company has approval from Bank of Ghana to operate in the banking and payment sector,” the statement said.
