The Bank of Ghana has published the Bank of Ghana Bancassurance Directive, 2025, alongside explanatory notes on revisions made after consultations with the banking industry and stakeholder engagements with the National Insurance Commission and the Ghana Association of Banks. The Directive sets a prudential, governance and consumer protection framework for banks and specialised deposit-taking institutions (regulated financial institutions, RFIs) that distribute insurance products as corporate agents. The framework restricts bancassurance to the Distribution Partnership Model, allowing an RFI to contract with one life and one general insurer while prohibiting risk sharing with the insurer. It requires prior written approval from the Bank of Ghana and a corporate agent licence from the National Insurance Commission, and introduces extensive prohibitions including product design and cost-related marketing by RFIs, co-branding of insurance products, underwriting or risk-taking, exclusivity clauses, selling commercial lines to corporate customers, and making insurance purchase a condition for accessing banking services. The application package must include a bancassurance agreement covering confidentiality safeguards, plus newly specified data protection and AML/CFT obligations, as well as risk assessments, due diligence on the insurer, staff training and licensing arrangements, IT and operational support, and a consumer protection framework. Approval is conditioned, among other factors, on capital adequacy thresholds of at least 13.0% for banks and 10.0% for SDIs, meeting liquidity requirements and non-performing loan thresholds, and the fitness and propriety of key management personnel. Ongoing requirements include real-time premium remittance into a designated insurer account held with the RFI, semi-annual returns to the Bank of Ghana, and disclosure of bancassurance income and expenses in annual audited financial statements, with administrative penalties and other sanctions available for non-compliance. The Directive is effective from 1 July 2026. RFIs with existing bancassurance arrangements that do not meet the requirements must revise them to ensure compliance by the earlier of the agreement’s renewal date or 30 June 2026.
Bank of Ghana 2025-09-01
Bank of Ghana issues bancassurance directive mandating distribution partnership model and banning forced insurance sales
The Bank of Ghana's Bancassurance Directive, 2025, sets a governance and consumer protection framework for banks distributing insurance products. It mandates the Distribution Partnership Model, requiring prior approval and a corporate agent licence, while prohibiting risk sharing, product design, and co-branding by RFIs. Compliance includes capital adequacy thresholds, liquidity requirements, and ongoing obligations like premium remittance and financial disclosures, with penalties for non-compliance.