The Bank of Ghana (“BoG”) recently launched its Regulatory and Innovation Sandbox (“the Sandbox”) after a successful pilot programme, in line with its commitment to creating a favourable regulatory environment that supports innovation, financial inclusion and financial stability.

The Sandbox will allow licensed or unlicensed institutions to live-test eligible innovations, whether licensed or unlicensed, in real-time, under BoG supervision. Eligible innovations that can be tested in the Sandbox must be:

· new digital business models not covered explicitly or implicitly under any current regulation;

· new and immature digital financial service technology; or

· innovative and disruptive digital financial service products that have the potential of addressing a persistent financial inclusion challenge.

The Sandbox is open to all licensed financial institutions, i.e., banks, specialized deposit-taking institutions, payment service providers, dedicated electronic money issuers, financial holding companies and other non-bank financial institutions. Unlicensed fintech start-ups that have innovative products, services or business models that meet the above-listed requirements are also eligible to be a part of the Sandbox.

The Sandbox is perfectly placed to take advantage of Ghana’s national digitization agenda and is expected to develop an efficient and inclusive financial service industry without risking financial stability by: fostering a deeper understanding of innovative products, services and business models; allowing for potential improvements to legal and regulatory requirements to encapsulate emerging technologies; and ensuring the careful monitoring and containment of any risks that may emerge from innovative products and services