By Morris Ogbetey
The Principal of the National Banking College, Gloria Quartey, has commended the Bank of Ghana’s sandbox approach, which is designed to support financial innovation while maintaining market integrity.
However, she has called for a stronger regulatory architecture capable of keeping pace with the speed of innovation.
Madam Quartey made the remarks in an interview with GBC News ahead of the maiden Financial Architecture Summit scheduled for July.
Ghana’s financial system, she noted, is undergoing structural recalibration. She said the macroeconomic recovery process, exchange rate dynamics, evolving liquidity conditions and the digital transformation of payment systems and market infrastructure have collectively reshaped financial intermediation in the country.
She further observed that digital finance is advancing faster than regulatory adaptation, while payment ecosystems are expanding beyond traditional banking channels. Cybersecurity risk, she warned, has now become a systemic risk.
According to her, the upcoming summit provides an opportunity for regulatory refocusing.
“We are also trying to look at accelerating interoperability and the digital integrations that we see, so that it’s not just the banks doing their thing, but how they can work together with the telcos, how they can work with the fintech, so we have a really broad-based coverage. A lot has been done in that space, but there is still so much more to be done,” she said.
Madam Quartey commended the Central Bank for its sandbox approach to understanding virtual asset innovation but urged regulators to stay ahead of the digital financial innovation curve.
She said one area requiring urgent attention is the artificial intelligence space, noting that many financial institutions have already deployed AI-enabled platforms.
“These systems are bringing a lot of ease to customers and increasing confidence and convenience,” she said. “However, there are also emerging threats, and it is very important that we begin to look at how cybersecurity regulations and operational resilience are factored into these developments.”
She added that the dialogue at the summit should help produce practical solutions to these emerging challenges.
The Financial Architecture Summit is expected to serve as a neutral platform for structured policy-industry engagement, provide clarity on regulatory expectations and supervisory direction, and enable constructive dialogue between regulators, market operators and technology enablers.
About the National Banking College
Founded in 1994, the National Banking College (NBC) was the first specialised professional training institution for middle- to top-level bankers in Ghana. Over the years, the college has expanded its mission to include applied research across a broad range of fields, as well as specialist consultancy services. NBC now focuses on delivering high-impact, customised learning programmes tailored to the needs of its clients’ operating environments.
