In remarks at the official launch of SaoPay, Bank of Ghana Governor Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama outlined the prudential, cybersecurity, customer protection and licensing expectations applying to the new Dedicated Electronic Money Issuer. He emphasized that SaoPay must safeguard customer funds, maintain accurate regulatory returns and complete three-way reconciliations among its electronic money platform, bank position and corresponding customer funds. SaoPay is also expected to join the Financial Industry Command Security Operations Centre and embed cyber resilience in its risk management as its business expands. Controls for customer due diligence, fraud prevention, reporting, record keeping and training must extend across its agent and merchant networks, while fees must be transparent and properly governed. The company must remain within its licence boundaries, including by offering investment, savings, credit, insurance and pension products only through appropriately regulated partners and complying with the relevant framework for inward remittances. As context, Ghana had about 85.8 million registered mobile money accounts holding nearly GHS 40 billion in August 2026, but only 26.4 million had been used during the previous 90 days. Asiama said new entrants should therefore be judged by active wallet use, lower payment acceptance costs and their ability to reach underserved customers, rather than account numbers alone. He also called for responsible governance of artificial intelligence and data analytics, noting that eligible innovations can be tested through the Bank of Ghana Regulatory Sandbox.

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