The total value of attempted fraud reported by banks and specialised deposit-taking institutions (SDIs) for the year 2021 amounted to GHC113 million, as compared to GHC1 billion reported in 2020, the Bank of Ghana’s (BoG) 2021 Banks and SDI fraud report has said.
According to the BoG report, out of this amount, a loss of GHC61 million was recorded, as compared to a loss of GHC25 million in 2020, representing an increase of 144.00% in year-on-year terms.
The report stated that banks and SDIs reported 2,347 fraud incidents in 2021, as compared to 2,670 incidents recorded in 2020, representing a decrease of 12.09% in year-on-year terms.
Cheque fraud
According to the report, 2021 saw an upsurge in the incidence of cheque fraud as compared to 2020.
The number of cheque fraud cases reported increased from 16 cases in 2020 to 113 cases in 2021 representing a 606.25% increase.
The report said most of the reported incidents were related to cloned cheques.
Impersonation
Impersonation also recorded a significant increase in the number of cases reported. The case count for impersonation in 2021 stood at 20, as compared to three cases in 2020, representing an increase of 566.66% in year-on-year terms.
In 2021, approximately GHC10 million loss was recorded, as compared to GHC0.59 million in 2020, representing an increase of 1,594.91% in year-on-year terms.
About 923 cases of burglary were also recorded in 2021, as compared to six cases recorded in 2020, representing an increase of 283.33% in year-on-year terms.
Suppression of funds
Suppression of funds accounted for 65.00% of the total number of fraud cases recorded for the period, though the count for 2021 decreased in comparison to 10 in 2020.
However, the count for suppression of funds in 2021 was 1,530 cases, as compared to 1,958 cases recorded in 2020, representing a decrease of 21.85% in year-on-year terms.
A loss of GHC4.2 million was recorded in 2021, compared to GHC2.3 million in 2020, representing an increase of 82.60% in year-on-year terms.
Forgery
Forgery and manipulation of documents accounted for 11.00% of the total fraud count recorded for 2021.
Forgery and manipulation of documents recorded 255 cases as compared to 151 cases recorded in 2020, representing an increase of 68.87% in year-on-year terms.
The attempted value recorded for forgery and manipulation of documents in 2021 rose to GHC53 million with a loss value of GHC7 million from an attempted value of GHC8.5 million and a loss of GHC6.5 million recorded in 2020, representing an increase of 7.69% in year-on-year terms.
E-money fraud accounted for 5.00% of the total fraud count for 2021. E-money fraud recorded 116 incidents for the period under review, as compared to 126 incidents recorded in the same period last year, representing a decrease of 7.93% in year-on-year terms.
