The Bank of Ghana (BoG) says it is awaiting final agreement between parties involved in the sale of shares in Société Générale Ghana before taking any further regulatory action.
Speaking at the 124th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) press conference in Accra on Friday, May 23, 2025, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Asiama, clarified that the central bank is not directly involved in the sale process but will ensure that all regulatory requirements are met before issuing its approval.
“Yes, at the last MPC, I made a point that the sale was on. The sale is still on as far as we are concerned. As a central bank, we are not parties to the sale; ours is to ensure that there is due diligence and that the parties that agreed on the sale meet our requirements,” Dr Asiama said.
“We are just waiting for the parties to the sale to reach an agreement. They will write to us and we will do the necessary due diligence. We will check everything we need to check and then issue our no-objection. So that exercise is still ongoing, we haven’t heard anything since the last MPC when we touched on this,” he added.
This reiterates comments Dr Asiama made during the previous MPC press conference on March 28, 2025, where he assured that BoG’s role is strictly regulatory.
“The sale of shares in Société Générale is ongoing, a number of prospective buyers have touched base with us. But as you know, we are central bank regulators. Ours is to issue a no-objection; ours is to ensure that the prospective buyer meets the fit and proper requirements,” he said.
“We await negotiations on their part. When it is concluded, we will then look at the aspects that we have to look at. We will have to make sure that they meet the policy guidelines when it comes to mergers and acquisitions, and to make sure that everything is fit and proper. So that is where we are as far as the SG transaction is concerned. We are waiting for the shareholders, we are waiting for the agreements that can be reached, and then we will get involved for that sale to go to the next step,” Dr Asiama explained.
The clarification comes in the wake of a statement issued by Société Générale Ghana on May 9, 2024, confirming that its parent company, Société Générale Group, which holds a 60.22% stake, had begun a strategic review.
“Société Générale Ghana has been informed that Société Générale Group, which holds 60.22% of Société Générale Ghana, has initiated a strategic review. If a concrete development were to be decided, a subsequent communication will be made at the appropriate time according to applicable legislation,” the bank said.
However, just a day earlier, on May 8, 2024, the Managing Director of Société Générale Ghana, Hakim Ouzzani, dismissed reports of the bank’s exit from Ghana as speculation.
“Some rumours have indeed taken root regarding SG Ghana. But it’s important to mention to all our stakeholders and our shareholders that the news item being circulated in the media was not issued by the group nor by SG Ghana,” Ouzzani said during the bank’s 44th Annual General Meeting in Accra.
“We don’t want to comment further,” he added, while reaffirming the bank’s commitment to strengthening its capital base, a strategy it has been pursuing since 2023.
Reports suggesting that the French banking group was preparing to exit Ghana after nearly two decades of operations have been circulating in local media.
However, no official confirmation of such a move has been provided by the bank or its parent group.
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
