Fraud cases drop in 2024, but value at risk rises

Fraud cases drop in 2024, but value at risk rises – BoG

Latest data from the Bank of Ghana indicates that the number of suspected fraud cases in banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDIs) sectors fell by 18% in 2024 compared to the previous year.

According to the Bank of Ghana’s 2024 Fraud Report, despite this decline in incidents, the total value at risk increased by 11%, rising from GH¢72 million in 2023 to GH¢80 million in 2024.

The report, which also covers Payment Service Providers (PSPs), revealed that forgery and document manipulation surged dramatically, emerging as the most severe fraud type.

This category accounted for 67% of the total value at risk for banks and SDIs in 2024, with losses rising from GH¢7.47 million in 2023 to GH¢53.5 million—a sevenfold increase. This spike was primarily driven by an isolated case involving GH¢53 million.

Meanwhile, identity theft losses grew nearly tenfold, from GH¢0.6 million to GH¢5.7 million, attributed to weak due diligence during Ghana Card-based financial transactions.

The report also highlighted that recovering losses remains a major challenge for financial institutions due to lengthy legal processes, often discouraging them from pursuing restitution.

In the PSP sector, the total value at risk rose to GH¢19 million in 2024, involving 15,673 reported cases—an increase of 18% in value and 7% in case count compared to 2023.

Across all three sectors—banks, SDIs, and PSPs—the total number of fraud cases increased by 5%, from 15,865 in 2023 to 16,733 in 2024. The total value at risk also rose by 13%, from GH¢88 million to GH¢99 million.

Specifically for banks, the total value at risk reached GH¢75 million in 2024, up from GH¢63 million in 2023, marking a 19% increase.

The 2024 edition of Bank of Ghana’s annual fraud report underscores the need for stronger internal controls, improved identity verification processes, and enhanced legal mechanisms to support fraud recovery.

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