[ad_1]
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, highlighted three main risks that the COVID-19 pandemic has discovered and that banks must manage efficiently to avoid unintended consequences.
Dr. Addisson said these risks include cybersecurity, credit, and operations.
He spoke at a webinar on managing banking risk in uncertain times organized by the Ghana Bankers Association (GAB).
Dr. Addison said the pandemic has fueled the movement toward digital transactions and financial inclusion; However, it has also brought with it a greater sense of cyberattacks within the financial sector.
“The use of digital and mobile banking platforms to conduct banking transactions has increased since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is evidenced in peer-to-peer transactions, bank to wallet, wallet to bank and wallet to bank on all platforms. “
He added: “Banks have responded positively to this phenomenon and have deployed sophisticated but user-friendly digital platforms to improve financial service delivery. Indeed, this trend is welcome as it broadly aligns with the overarching goal of digitizing Ghana’s economy and promoting financial inclusion and economic growth. “
He said the push towards further digitization “has increased cyber risks and fraud and therefore calls for effective cyber risk management policies and procedures by banks.”
He said: “The Bank of Ghana expects all banks to create robust systems to prevent such cybersecurity incidents. All the successes recorded in digitizing banking systems would be eroded if adequate investments are not made for the effective protection of information technology and security infrastructure ”.
“The central bank has issued directives and guidelines such as the cybersecurity directive that banks must adhere to on an ongoing basis to effectively manage cyber risk and fraud,” he added.
