Summary of Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987)
Summary of Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987)
Summary of Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987)
Table of Contents
1.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................................2
2.0 Scope of the Act.................................................................................................................................2
3.0 Payment Systems Advisory Committee...........................................................................................3
4.0 Licensing and Authorization..............................................................................................................3
4.1 Payment Service Providers............................................................................................................3
4.2 Electronic Money Issuer.................................................................................................................4
4.3 Dedicated Electronic money issuer..............................................................................................4
5.0 Grounds under which Bank of Ghana may reject application for License...................................5
6.0 Procedure for challenging rejected application..............................................................................5
7.0 Suspension of license or authorization............................................................................................5
8.0 Revocation of license or authorization.............................................................................................6
9.0 Governance Structure, Disclosure and Technology Requirements..............................................7
10.0 Permissible and Prohibited transactions and activities................................................................7
11.0 Procedure on Dormant Accounts and Suspicious Accounts........................................................8
12.0 Reporting and Supervision..............................................................................................................8
13.0 Consumer protection and Complaints............................................................................................9
14.0 Evidence of Transfer........................................................................................................................9
15.0 Use of Agents....................................................................................................................................9
16.0 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................10
Table of Offences....................................................................................................................................11
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1.0 Overview
The Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987) became law on 13 th May, 2019 having
then been assented to by the President. The purpose of the Act is reflected in its long title as to
amend and consolidate the laws relating to payment systems, payment services and to regulate
institutions which carry on payment services and electronic money business, and to provide for
related matters.
The Act contains 104 sections and 3 schedules. Sections 1 to 3 provide for the scope and
application of the Act. Sections 4 to 6 establish and provide for payment systems advisory
committee. Sections 7 to 20 provides for the Licensing and authorization of Payment Service
Providers. Sections 21 to 26 provide for the licensing and authorization of Electronic Money
Issuers.
Section 27 deals with the validity and renewal of license or Authorization whereas section 28
deals with the procedure for review and appeal over refusal of license or authorization. Sections
29 to 39 make provisions for the issuance of electronic money. Sections 40 to 43 provide for
the oversight and reporting requirements of electronic money issuers and payment service
providers. Sections 44 to 47 make provisions for consumer protection.
Sections 48 to 52 provide for the establishment, designation and systemic risks of payment
systems. Sections 53 to 62 provide for customer information and parties obligation in respect of
a transaction. Sections 63 to 68 make provisions for transfer finality and insolvency and section
69 deals with evidence of transfer.
Sections 70 to 82 deal with clearing house whereas sections 83 to 85 deal with collection and
verification of payment instrument. Sections 86 to 96 provide for the permission to use agents
and section 97 to 99 make provisions for the oversight, reporting and sanctions of agent.
Sections 100 to 104 contain miscellaneous provisions.
The first schedule contains types of electronic money account. The second schedule contains
limitation on over-the counter transactions, and the third schedule contains minimum due
diligence requirements.
Payment service is defined as the provision of service to facilitate the transfer of funds from a
payer to a payee using various forms of payment instruments of electronic money. Payment
system on the other hand refers to the procedures, rules, instruments and infrastructure that
facilitates transfer of funds. The Act applies to banks, specialized deposit-taking institutions, a
dedicated electronic money issuer, a payment service provider, an affiliate of a bank, deposit-
taking institution or a financial holding company, an agent of a bank, deposit-taking institution,
a dedicated electronic money issuer or payment service provider.
A dedicated electronic money issuer is a body corporate that has been licensed under section
24 of the Act. A payment service provider is a body corporate licensed to provide payment
service. Agent is a person who provides agency services to a principal under an agency
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agreement. The Act runs hand-in-hand with other statutes including the Bill of Exchange Act,
1961 (Act 55), the Companies Act, 1963 (Act 179), the Bank of Ghana, 2002 (Act 612), the
Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775), Electronic Transactions Act, 2008 (Act 772),
Banks and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions, 2016 (Act 930) and the Data Protection Act,
2012 (Act 843).
The body with the overall supervisory and regulatory authority in matters relating to payment,
clearing and settlement systems is the Bank of Ghana. The functions of the Bank of Ghana
under the Act have been summarized in section 3 including dealing with unlawful and improper
practices of payment providers and electronic money issuers as well as issuing authorizations to
banks and specialized deposit-taking institutions and to non-bank financial institutions.
The Bank of Ghana is mandated to establish a Payment Systems Advisory Committee. The
committee shall consist of the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, or the Deputy Governor (in the
absence of the Governor) who shall be the chairperson of the committee; and one
representative each from National Information Technology Agency and Ministry of Finance not
below the rank of a Director; six other members of relevant stakeholders determined by the
Bank of Ghana.
The work of the committee shall be to advise the bank of Ghana on the regulation and
oversight of the payment systems; operational and technical stands of payments systems; and
any other matter affecting payment services, clearing and settlement of payments. Every
member other than the Governor shall hold office for a period of four years and be eligible for
re-appointment for another term only.
The committee is required to meet at least twice in a year and the chairperson is obliged to
convene an extraordinary meeting at the request in writing of at least one-third of the
membership of the committee. The place and time of the meeting shall be determined by the
chairperson who shall preside at the meetings or his alternative in his absence. The quorum
shall be six members unless the committee determines a greater number in respect of a
particular matter.
If a member has an interest in a matter before the committee for consideration, the member
shall disclose the nature of the interest, which disclosure shall form part of the record of the
consideration of the committee. The member shall not participate in the deliberation of the
committee in respect of that matter. Where a member fails to comply with the disclosure
requirement in a matter he has interest, that member shall cease to be a member of the
committee.
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the Act. A body corporate regulated under Act 930 shall not engage in payment service
business unless authorized by the Bank of Ghana. A body corporate which intends to operate as
a payment service provider shall apply for a payment license. The application shall be made in a
prescribed form, and shall describe the nature and functionality of the proposed payment
services that will be made available to customers. The application shall contain information
enumerated in section 8(b) including information about the applicant’s business, business plan,
information on all bank accounts; and shall be accompanied with a registration certificate of the
Data Protection Commission or any other body authorized to permit the applicant to control
data.
The applicant shall have, at least, 30 percent Ghanaian participation. Where an applicant
satisfies the requirement under section 18 relating to fees; 19 relating to governance
arrangements; 20 relating to technology, security and control; 44 relating to consumer
protection; and 47 relating to complaint procedure, that applicant becomes eligible to be
licensed or have license renewed as payment service provider. The Bank of Ghana may grant
the license if it is satisfied that the applicant has complied with the requirements in the
foregoing sections and any other requirement specified by it. The bank of Ghana may impose
terms and conditions when it grants the license.
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5.0 Grounds under which Bank of Ghana may reject application for License
The following are the basis by the which the Bank of Ghana may reject an application for
license:
i. If the applicant or its significant shareholder has been convicted of a crime involving
a financial transaction in any jurisdiction within the past ten years.
iii. If the applicant fails to respond to a request from the Bank of Ghana for additional
information within thirty days of a second request for the same information.
An application that has been rejected may be resubmitted by the applicant if the deficiencies
giving rise to the rejection are rectified.
Where the Bank of Ghana rejects an application, the applicant has a right to, within 30 days,
petition the Bank of Ghana for a review. Within 30 days from the date of receipt of the petition,
the Bank of Ghana is required to review the petition and inform the applicant of its decision. If
the applicant is dissatisfied with the decision of the Bank of Ghana, the applicant may within 30
days from the date of the receipt of the Bank of Ghana decision appeal in writing to the Chief
Justice who shall constitute an adjudicative panel to review the decision of the Bank of Ghana.
Unfortunately, the Act does not provide for any time within which the Chief Justice must
constitute the adjudicative panel.
The adjudicative panel shall comprise a judge nominated by the Chief Justice not below the
rank of High Court Justice who shall be the chairperson; one person with expert knowledge in
payment systems with at least 10 years relevant experience to be nominated by the payment
system advisory committee; a chartered accountant of at least 10 years practice experience to
be nominated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants. All the members of the panel shall be
appointed by the Chief Justice. Where the applicant is dissatisfied with the decision of the
adjudicative panel, the applicant may appeal to the High Court.
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i. The Bank of Ghana is satisfied that the provider has failed to meet infrastructure
requirement;
ii. The Bank of Ghana is satisfied that the affairs of that payment service provider are
being conducted in a manner that is detrimental to the interests of the payment
system;
iii. The payment system provider is required to suspend the service under any other
law.
The Bank of Ghana may revoke a license or authorization under any of the following
circumstances:
i. Where any other license or authorization related to payment services or issuance of
electronic money is revoked under any other law;
ii. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer refuses to permit an
inspection or provide information required by the Bank of Ghana;
iii. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer provides false or
misleading information in applying for the license or authorization;
iv. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer fails to comply with
the terms and conditions of the license or authorization;
v. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer engages in a pattern
of unsafe and unsound practices that threaten the financial condition of the payment
service provider or electronic money issuer, or is detrimental to interests of users
and other providers;
vi. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer is insolvent under
any law as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction;
vii. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer cease to carry on the
business of payment services in the country, goes into liquidation, is would up, or is
dissolved;
viii. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer does not provide
payment services or issues electronic within 6 months from license or authorization
date;
ix. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer ceases to engage in
payment services or electronic money business for more than six months;
x. Where the payment service provider or electronic money issuer constitute a threat to
the stability of the payment system by continuing its payment services or electronic
business;
xi. Where the revocation of the license or authorization of that payment service
provider or electronic money issuer is desirable to protect the interest of consumers;
and
xii. Where payment service provider or electronic money issuer fails to comply with a
directive of the Bank of Ghana under section 15(2).
A payment service provider or electronic money issuer whose license has been revoked is
obliged to arrange and pay all customers their electronic money held within 10 days of the date
of revocation.
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9.0 Governance Structure, Disclosure and Technology Requirements
A payment service provider is required to have a Board of Directors of at least three members
and two of whom, including the Chief Executive Officer, shall be resident in Ghana, and shall
provide the biographical information on the board of directors and key management personnel
to the Bank of Ghana. A member of the board must be a fit and proper person and must have
the necessary experience and qualifications to perform the functions of that member.
A body corporate regulated under Act 930 must for the purpose of a payment system constitute
a sub-committee of the Board of Directors to exercise oversight of the payment system and
designate an officer to manage the operations.
A payment system provider shall have an appropriate and tested technology system which is
equipped with fraud monitoring and detention tools with a valid third-party certification from a
reputable certification body on compliance status of relevant standards determined by the bank
of Ghana. A payment system provider shall have a system which is capable of interoperating
with other payment systems in the country when required. A payment system provider shall
have a cyber security policy where applicable and ensure that a transaction against an account
of a customer is authorized by the account holder.
A payment service provider shall ensure that the system provide a complete audit log of all user
activities for at least 6 years.
In addition, dedicated electronic money issuer may engage in any of the following activities vis:
the operation of payment systems, where the conditions of applicable rules, acts or notices are
met; and the provision of operational services and related ancillary services in respect of the
issuing of electronic money; The Bank of Ghana has the right to in writing restrict the
permissible transaction of electronic money issuer or payment service provider or remove any
prior restrictions as it considers appropriate.
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A payment service provider or dedicated electronic money issuer which is not a bank or
specialized deposit-taking institution is prohibited from engaging in banking business within the
meaning of Act 930 or any other activity prohibited by the Bank. In addition, a payment service
provider or dedicated electronic money issuer is prohibited from counting airtime as electronic
money or using airtime not expressed in monetary value for permissible transaction under the
Act.
Where an account is blocked for 12 months and not reactivated, the Electronic money issuer
must terminate the account and transfer the balance on the account into a separate account
with a float holding bank or any other bank designated by the Bank of Ghana for at most 3
years. An Electronic money issuer is required to keep records of every transaction for at least 6
years and keep in a live environment the details of a transaction by a customer for at least 2
months. An Electronic money issuer is under obligation to block an account when there is a
suspicious transaction. A suspicious transaction is a transaction is that appears to involve or to
be connected to an unlawful activity.
The Bank of Ghana has a duty to exercise oversight and supervisory powers and functions over
electronic money issuers and payment service providers. The Bank of Ghana may, without
notice also carry out scrutiny or investigations into a specific matter concerning the electronic
money issuer or payment service provider.
A payment service provider or electronic money issuer is required to forward to the Bank of
Ghana copies of its report on audit of the books of accounts and information technology system
three months after the financial year. A payment service provider or electronic money issuer is
required to grant the Bank of Ghana access to review its system and operations, and to connect
to its system for purposes of monitoring. The Bank of Ghana is under obligation to give relevant
transaction records from its monitoring system to the Ghana Revenue Authority for the
purposes of revenue assurance measurements.
For the purposes of supervision, the Bank of Ghana shall require a payment service provider or
electronic money issuer to furnish it with any information relating to the assets, liabilities,
income, expenditure or any other matter that the Bank of Ghana may require including the
details, form and period within which the information is to be furnished. A payment service
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provider or electronic money issuer must give notice to, and seek approval from the Bank of
Ghana before implementing any proposed change.
Subject to prescribed thresholds, electronic money holders are eligible to protection under the
Depositors Protection Act, 2016 (Act 931). The Act outlines some universal consumer protection
principles that electronic money issuers and payment service providers must observe. In
addition, electronic money issuers and payment service providers are to ensure a high-quality
performance not below 99.5% service availability and accessibility.
Electronic money issuers and payment service providers are to create functional consumer
complaint units for users of the electronic money or payment services and equip the unit to
receive complaints through phone calls, electronic mails, SMS and personal visits by customers.
The procedure for consumer protection must provide customers with easily understood
information about the customer care system and must be accessible both during and outside
business hours including statutory holidays.
The procedure must allow for a customer to lodge a complaint either orally or in writing through
a customer care telephone number, or by a visit to the office, or by electronic mail or post as
applicable. The procedure must provide for the complaint to be resolved within 5 days, and
where the customer is informed that the issue is complex, the complained within additional 15
days.
The Act provides that a document, computer print-out, or any electronic storage media
containing information that relates to a transfer through a system is admissible in evidence. In
addition, a payment instrument, certified copy a payment instrument, or the essential details of
the payment instrument obtained from an electronic medium is admissible in evidence in any
proceedings in a court of law.
Any principal that intends to use agents is required to apply to the Bank of Ghana for a written
authorization before the agency business shall commence. The Act allocates full responsibility to
the principal for any action of the agent notwithstanding that the said action are not covered or
authorized by the agency agreement. The application to the Bank of Ghana must contain the
services to be provided through the agent, the geographical coverage of the agent over a 3-
year period, copies of draft agency agreements, description of technology to be used etc.
The Act also provides for some particular requirements in section 87 to be contained in the
agreement. A principal is required to terminate the agency agreement in instances where the
agent or master-agent is convicted of an offence involving fraud, dishonesty or financial
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impropriety. Other instances include where the agent or master-agent contravenes any
provisions of the Act.
16.0 Conclusion
The Payment Systems and Services Act which grants the Minister power to make regulations by
Legislative Instrument also empowers the Bank of Ghana to issue rules, notices and guidelines
for among other things, the settlement of disputes in clearing activities. A payment and
settlement that existed prior to the enactment of the Act shall, subject to the Act, continue to
operate. This means that where the Act provides for new rules or conditions or requirements, a
pre-existing payment and settlement must comply.
However, an electronic money issuer or payment service provider that existed prior to the
coming into force of the Act is required to apply for authorization or license under the Act not
later than 13th February, 2020.
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Table of Offences
S/No Reference Description of Offence/Nature Penalty
. of Non-Compliance
1 Section 9(1)(a) An individual carrying on payment Fine of at least 2000 penalty
service business without license units and maximum of 4000
penalty units; or a term of
imprisonment of at least 4
years and maximum of 7
years; or both fine and
imprisonment
2 Section 9(1)(b) A body corporate carrying on Fine of at least 4500 penalty
payment service business without units and maximum of 7000
license penalty units
3 Section 11(1) A body corporate regulated under Administrative penalty of
Act 930 carrying on payment 5000 penalty units
service business without
authorization
4 Section 13(7) Failure by payment service Administrative penalty of
provider to pay customers within 2000 penalty units for the 10
10 days after revocation of license days
5 Section 13(7) Failure by payment service 40 penalty units per day
provider to pay customers after 10
days of revocation of license
6 Section 16(3) Director or key management Administrative penalty of
personnel of a payment service 2000 penalty units
provider who continues to hold
office after bankruptcy, conviction
of an offence involving fraud or
dishonesty, removal from office by
a competent authority, or unsound
mind determined by a court of
competent jurisdiction;
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8 Section 25(a) Individual that engages in Fine of at least 1500 penalty
electronic money business without units and maximum of 3000
license from the Bank of Ghana penalty units; or a term of
imprisonment of at least 4
years and maximum of 7
years; or both fine and
imprisonment
9 Section 25(b) Body corporate that that engages Fine of at least 2500 penalty
in electronic money business units and maximum of 5000
without authorization from the penalty units
Bank of Ghana
10 Section 26(a) Individual who contravenes a term Fine of at least 1500 penalty
of the license or authorization as units and maximum of 3000
an electronic money issuer penalty units; or a term of
imprisonment of at least 4
years and maximum of 7
years; or both fine and
imprisonment
11 Section 26(b) Body corporate that contravenes a Fine of at least 2500 penalty
term of the license or authorization units and maximum of 5000
as an electronic money issuer penalty units
12 Section 29(6) Electronic money issuer that uses Administrative penalty of
frivolous fees and charges or 3000 penalty units
invent new account to hold
electronic money float for the
purpose limiting interest below
other account types
13 Section 29(4) An electronic money issuer that Administrative penalty of
pays less than 90% or such rate as 5000 penalty units
determined by the Bank of Ghana
of the accrued interest net of any
fees or charges to electronic
money holders
14 Section 29(4) An electronic money issuer that Suspension of license
fails to pay the interest difference
one month after it had paid less
than 90% or such rate as
determined by the Bank of Ghana
of the accrued interest net of any
fees or charges to electronic
money holders
15 Section 31 (3) A payment service provider or Administrative penalty of
dedicated electronic money issuer 3000 penalty units
which is not a bank or specialized
deposit-taking institution but
engages in banking business
within the meaning of Act 930, or
engages in any other activity
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prohibited by the Bank of Ghana;
13
risks that may result in loss to
beneficiaries; or
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29 Section 93(3) Failure by a principal to notify the Administrative penalty of 500
Bank of Ghana within 10 days of penalty units
any change in the master-agent
information provided to the Bank
of Ghana upon the appointment of
the agent
30 Section 95(3) Frequent or material instances of Administrative penalty or
non-compliance with customer due revocation of authorization
diligence requirements by an agent or license of the principal
31 Section 99(3) Failure by a principal to notify the Administrative penalty of
Bank of Ghana of a material 1000 penalty units
change within 30 days before the
change
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