BoG inaugurates Non-Interest Financial Advisory Council (NIFAC)

On 18 August 2026, the Bank of Ghana inaugurated the Non-Interest Financial Advisory Council (NIFAC) at Bank Square in Accra. The council is the national advisory structure provided for under the Bank of Ghana’s Guidelines for the Regulation and Supervision of Non-Interest Banking in Ghana, published in January 2026.

NIFAC will advise the central bank on the governance, regulation, and supervision of Non-Interest Banking Institutions, and support a sound, inclusive, and credible non-interest finance ecosystem. Its role is advisory: it does not replace the supervisory, enforcement, or licensing powers of the Bank of Ghana, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), or the National Insurance Commission (NIC). As the wider ecosystem develops, NIFAC is also expected to provide advisory support to the SEC and the NIC.

Speaking at the inauguration, Governor Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama stressed strong governance, consumer protection, and public confidence. He cautioned that products must not be accepted simply because they carry a non-interest label: structure, risks, costs, and obligations must be transparent and understood by customers. Non-interest finance, he noted, widens choice — it is a complement to conventional banking, based on trade, leasing, partnerships, and asset-backed transactions, not “free finance.”

The five-member council is chaired by Prof. Bashir Aliyu Umar, a former Special Adviser on Non-Interest (Islamic) Banking to the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. The other members are Dr Yussuf Adam Al-Badani (International Islamic Liquidity Management); Dr George Baah-Danquah (finance and accounting); Adishetu Hamidu Naabo (Principal Economic Officer, Ministry of Finance); and Samuel Gameli Gadzo (chartered accountant; Senior Lecturer, University of Education, Winneba).

Prof. John Gatsi, Adviser to the Governor on Non-Interest Banking and Finance, said appointments were guided by local content, cross-border expertise, religious neutrality, experience and interest, and inclusiveness — religious affiliation was not a selection criterion. That framing matches Ghana’s neutral regulatory term “Non-Interest Banking” and Ethika’s position that NIB products are open to all.

Earlier in 2026, the Governor indicated that at least one indigenous bank had formally applied for a non-interest banking licence, with others preparing submissions, and that the first licence was hoped for within the year. As of August 2026, no NIB licence has been gazetted. Ethika’s bank directory will list institutions only after BoG licensing is publicly confirmed.

Sources: Graphic Online; Citi Newsroom; Ghana News Agency (May 2026 application update).