Supervisory and Regulatory Role
(1)
The Bank of Ghana shall have overall supervisory and regulatory authority to:
(a)
register, license and regulate credit
bureaus, data providers and credit information recipients and their agents;
(b)
control and supervise
activities of the credit bureaus,
data providers, credit information
recipients and their agents;
(c)
maintain proper standards
of conduct and acceptable credit reporting practices
under the scheme;
(d)
make regulations and rules for institutions under this Act;
(e)
take measures
to protect the interests of credit information subjects;
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f) protect
the integrity of the credit
reporting system against
abuses;
(g)
impose penalties
for contravention of this Act;
(h)
undertake other activities necessary or
expedient to give full effect to the provisions of this Act; and
(i)
perform other functions specified
under this Act.
(2) The Bank shall advise
the Minister for Finance on matters relating
to credit reporting.
(3) The Bank shall establish
within its organisation, a Credit Reporting Department or office.
(4) The
Bank may authorise the Head of the Credit Reporting Department of the Bank or
any other official or person to exercise a power and do an act that it
considers appropriate in order to discharge its duties under this Act.
(5) The Bank of Ghana may establish a Public Credit
Bureau.
Licensing and Regulation of Credit Bureau Operations
(1) A
person shall not establish, operate or conduct business as a credit bureau
unless that person has obtained a licence for that purpose from the Bank.
(2) A
person shall not propose to engage in credit bureau activities unless that
person has obtained a licence for that purpose from the Bank.
(3) A person
who establishes, operates or conducts the business of a credit bureau without a
licence commits an offence and is
liable on summary conviction,
(a)
in the case of a body corporate or other body of persons
to a fine of not less than five
thousand penalty units, and
(b)
in the case of an individual to a fine of not
less than five thousand penalty units or to a term of imprisonment of not less
than ten years or to both.
