The Bank of Ghana has announced tougher sanctions against customers of banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDIs) who issue dud cheques, citing persistent violations despite earlier measures introduced to curb the practice.
In a notice issued on June 24, 2026, the central bank said it had observed “with grave concern the high issuance of dud cheques by some customers of Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDIs),” warning that the trend was undermining confidence in cheque transactions across the country.
According to the notice, the renewed measures are intended “to discourage this malpractice, and to sustain confidence in the payment system.”
Under the new regime, customers who issue a dud cheque for the first time will be charged a penalty equivalent to 10 percent of the cheque’s face value and issued with a formal warning by their bank or SDI.
“The bank or SDI shall levy an account holder who issues a dud cheque for the first time 10% of the cheque’s face value and issue a Warning Notification to the affected customer on the consequences of repeating the offence,” the notice stated.
The offending customer will also be reported to Credit Reference Bureaus and the Bank of Ghana and placed under surveillance for a minimum period of one year.
For a second offence committed within one year of the first, the customer will face a higher penalty of 15 percent of the cheque’s face value in addition to another warning notification.
Customers who issue a dud cheque for a third time within the same one-year period will be subjected to even harsher penalties, including a levy of 20 percent of the cheque value and a ban on issuing cheques in Ghana for at least three years.
“The Bank of Ghana shall ban such a customer from issuing cheques within the country for a minimum period of three years,” the central bank said.
Although affected customers will still be allowed to receive funds and conduct electronic transactions on their accounts, they will be barred from accessing new credit facilities from the banking sector for one year.
The central bank said all banks and SDIs would be notified of the ban and required to recall all unused cheque books from affected customers within five working days of notification.
Customers who fail to surrender their unused cheque books within 10 working days risk further sanctions.
“The Bank of Ghana may ban such a customer from operating any current account,” the notice warned, adding that such individuals could also be added to a new “Directory of High-Risk Cheque Issuers” to be maintained by the central bank for use by the banking industry.
The Bank of Ghana further directed banks and SDIs to continue submitting monthly reports on dud cheque issuances to both the central bank and Credit Reference Bureaus, including “Nil Reports” in months where no such incidents are recorded.
Failure by financial institutions to submit returns or the submission of inaccurate or incomplete information will attract sanctions under the relevant provisions of the law.
Banks and SDIs have also been directed to display copies of the notice prominently in banking halls and on their official websites.
The central bank warned that institutions that fail to comply with the new directives would be sanctioned under the provisions of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
