Black Stars of Ghana’s latest sponsor, Mara, a non-bank financial institution has not been licensed by the Bank of Ghana or the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).
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They are not authorised to trade in cryptocurrency or bitcoins or any other non-bank financial services in Ghana, according to Bank of Ghana laws.
“They [MARA] are not licensed in Ghana, and should not be advertising their services,” the bank said.
GFA President, Kurt Okraku, mentioned that the sponsorship money has been paid to the association, but it is unclear which bank or accounts of the FA the money was paid to.
On Friday, 9th September, the GFA signed a one-year sponsorship deal with Mara-Metarvese worth $1 million ahead of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.
A former Finance Committee Chairman, Wilfred Kwaku Osei, affectionately called Palmer described the agreement as an illegality because of the central bank’s long-standing position on cryptocurrency trading in Ghana.
Investigation at the central bank and financial regulator, the Bank of Ghana, revealed that MARA Blockchain is not licensed in Ghana and cannot “advertise their services in Ghana.”
According to MARA, it is “Africa’s ultimate digital finance ecosystem, empowering Africans’ dreams by leveraging blockchain to transform the social and economic future of African communities, countries and the continent.
Also Read: Bank Of Ghana Clears Doubt On CBDC Effect On Mobile Money Services
During their partnership unveiling at the Ghana FA secretariat, Mara became an official sponsor of the Black Stars of Ghana to drive football sustainability ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, scheduled to kick off in November.
The Bank of Ghana is by law empowered to license, regulate, and supervise all banking and non-banking business activities in Ghana. In particular reference to cryptocurrencies the central Bank issued “Notice Number BG/GOV/SEC/2018/02 in which it highlighted recent developments in the use, holding, and trading of virtual or digital currencies (also known as cryptocurrencies), such as Bitcoin in Ghana.
The Bank of Ghana notified the general public that these activities in digital currency were not licensed under the Payments System Act 2003 (Act 662).
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