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Bank of Ghana deputy governor Maxwell Opoku-Afari stressed the large gains that Ghana has made in financial inclusion, mostly due to the growth of its mobile money sector. He said the number of mobile money accounts has grown from 3.8m in 2012 to 32.6m in 2018, which is greater than the population of Ghana (30.1 million).

Bank of Ghana (BoG) in collaboration with EMTECH has launched an eCedi hackathon, to provide opportunities for Fintechs, developers and innovators to design innovative solutions that explore various use cases of a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The event is set to run for 12 weeks, during which innovators will brainstorm to come up with solutions to address financial inclusion challenges in Ghana. The proposed innovations are expected to leverage eCedi tokens and APIs to prototype solutions or develop tools that address various use cases.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is delaying the launch of its e-Cedi central bank digital currency (CBDC) due to the impact of economic dislocation caused in 2022. The pilot phase has been completed, with selected consumers at Sefwi Asafo in the Western North Region using the currency to buy items, goods, food and services, including when users were offline. "At a certain point, [the BoG] will go back to the e-Cedi project and decide on the launch date." https://www.facebook.com/thebankofghana/videos/889240668812916

The Bank of Ghana has launched a new regulatory and innovation sandbox to provide a controlled testing environment for new financial products and services, in partnership with US-based technology firm Emtech. Emtech has built cloud-based software specifically for central banks. It said the sandbox would allow financial firms to interact with the central bank to test digital financial products while evolving [an] enabling regulatory environment. The sandbox is open to banks, specialised deposit-taking institutions and payment service providers. https://www.bog.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/PRESS-RELEASE-BANK-OF-GHANA-SANDBOX-PILOT.pdf

The Bank of Ghana concluded its first central bank digital currency (CBDC) hackathon. The event involved ten teams developing eCedi solutions deployed on Hedera's public DLT, using EMTECH's Beyond Cash digital currency solution. KPMG participated as a service provider on a pro bono basis, establishing the competition criteria and supervising the event. The hackathon participants included developers, banks and fintechs. https://www.bog.gov.gh/speeches/governors-opening-remarks-at-ecedi-hackathon-awards-dinner/

The Bank of Ghana (BOG) has reportedly completed the second phase of Project Digital Economy Semi-Fungible Token (DESFT), a joint project with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The first phase saw the development of the blockchain-based Universal Trusted Credentials (UTC) system that enables micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to efficiently verify authenticity of key information, such as basic credentials, licenses, certificates, and trade records across borders. In the second phase, a cross-border payment was made using UTCs, the eCedi CBDC and a Singapore dollar stablecoin, using the Purpose-Bound Money (PBM) protocol.

The Bank of Ghana (BOG) confirmed the completion of the Project Digital Economy Semi-Fungible Token (DESFT), a joint project with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The first phase saw the development of the blockchain-based Universal Trusted Credentials (UTC) system that enables micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to efficiently verify authenticity of key information, such as basic credentials, licenses, certificates, and trade records across borders. In the second phase, a cross-border payment was made using UTCs, the eCedi CBDC and a Singapore dollar stablecoin, using the purpose-bound money (PBM) protocol.

Ghana has recently become the fastest-growing mobile money market in Africa, with registered accounts increasing six-fold between 2012 and 2017.

The Bank of Ghana is in the advanced stages of introducing a retail digital currency (CBDC). The e-cedi will go through three phases before it goes into circulation. The first phase, which is now underway, is focused on the design of the CBDC, and the second phase will look at implementation. In the final stage, a pilot would determine whether the digital currency will be feasible before it goes into circulation.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) will begin a pilot of the digital cedi in a sandbox environment in September. https://www.bog.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/1st-Deputy-Governor-Dr.-Maxwell-Opoku-Afaris-Policy-Speech-to-Journalists-JBA-Training-on-Monetary-Policy-After-Pandemic-09-07-21.pdf

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) will begin a pilot of the digital cedi in a sandbox environment in September. https://www.bog.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/1st-Deputy-Governor-Dr.-Maxwell-Opoku-Afaris-Policy-Speech-to-Journalists-JBA-Training-on-Monetary-Policy-After-Pandemic-09-07-21.pdf

The Bank of Ghana, continues to explore central bank digital currency. The new digital currency will reportedly be named the "e-cedi" and the Bank is in talks with key stakeholders to finalise the details of the project. In a recent keynote address, Governor Addison reportedly described the move as a "pilot project" which will initially be trialled in a sandbox environment.

"This study explores the current state of mobile money usage in Ghana, discussing the issues within the context of COVID-19. The study further provides a futuristic analysis of the emerging developments on the use of mobile money as a tool for enhancing financial inclusion. Essentially, these future projections are provided on the critical issues that need to be considered in a post-COVID-19 context. Although the analysis dwells heavily on Ghana, the issues raised can be applied to the context of other developing economies with similar informal sectors and pro-poor populations."

The e-cedi, which the Bank of Ghana is set to pilot, reportedly seeks to facilitate transactions without the need for power or connectivity." This is a core functionality of the Filia central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform of the Bank of Ghana's technical partner G+D.

The Central Bank of Ghana (BoG) has reportedly granted Vodafone Cash and CalBank customers the opportunity to test its online version of its central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eCedi. BoG has created online and offline wallets for eCedi but has only deployed the online pilot in the city's capital, Accra. Meanwhile, the BoG's Governor reported that usage and uptake of the offline version of the eCedi is still being piloted in a small town called Sefwi Asafo in the Western North region.

The Bank of Ghana outlined the key design aspects of its retail CBDC plans. With inclusiveness being a major motivation, it will attempt to bring the eCedi to citizens without a bank account, or even internet access. In that regard, the Bank proposed the use of hardware wallets and other devices.

According to Bank of Ghana Governor Ernest Addison, a successful implementation of the eCedi CBDC will further advance financial inclusion, strengthen policy transmission, promote efficiency in the payment system, and provide a safe alternative to private digital assets. 38. After taking the necessary preparatory steps, a three (3) staged pilot was implemented in Accra and Tarkwa in collaboration with CAL Bank, Fidelity Bank,Vodafone Cash, IT Consortium and ExpressPay to test the online version of the eCedi, while an off-line version was tested in Sefwi Asafo. The initial findings from the pilot have provided the Bank with deep insights on the possible implementation process for the eCedi, and these results will soon be shared with industry players.

Ghana has the highest mobile penetration in West Africa and already outperforms many of its regional peers. By the end of 2019, mobile adoption stood at 55 per cent, higher than the regional average which is at 44.8 per cent. This means a huge number of people can be served through digital services, positively impacting the growth of the digital economy.

Ghana could issue a digital form of the nation's currency, the cedi, in the "near future" and is in talks to develop a pilot project in a sandbox environment. https://www.bog.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/23rd-Annual-Banking-Conference_Speech_Governor_final.pdf

The Bank of Ghana, says the bank is working on establishing a sandbox to promote innovation in the financial market and also test some concepts including the establishment of a Central Bank Digital Currency. https://www.bog.gov.gh/speeches/address-delivered-by-the-first-deputy-governor-dr-maxwell-opoku-afari-at-a-virtual-stakeholder-workshop-on-payment-systems-service-act-2019/