The Court of Appeal has dismissed a stay of proceedings action instituted against HODA Holdings by the Bank of Ghana, following the revocation of the licence of uniCredit Savings and Loans.

The three-member panel chaired by Justice Welbourne together with Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour and Justice N. C. A. Agbevor, said the central bank failed to make a convincing case.

The Court also awarded a cost of GHS2,000 against the central bank in favour of HODA Holdings.

On May 20, 2020, the Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Gifty Agyei Addo dismissed an application by the BoG seeking to halt proceedings in a case initiated against it by HODA Holdings.

The dismissal of the BoG application paves the way for the hearing of the substantive case filed by HODA Holdings to commence at the High Court on 23 July 2020.

In September last year, the Vacation Court in Accra dismissed an application filed by the lawyers of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) which prayed the court to strike out a suit filed by uniCredit in which the financial institution is challenging the central bank’s revocation of its operational licence.

uniCredit wants the court to set aside the regulator’s licence revocation action.

Before the hearing of the substantive case, however, the central bank filed an application asking the court to trash the case.

The BoG argued that the applicant (uniCredit) per its case, did not properly invoke the jurisdiction of the court.

The regulator contended that uniCredit was to have started at arbitration process first.

However, the Commercial Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice George Koomson, in its ruling, said the uniCredit has properly invoked the jurisdiction of the court.

A cost of GHS3,000 was awarded against BoG.

uniCredit and 22 other microfinance institutions had their licences revoked recently by the Bank of Ghana.