E-Levy removal will enhance our business operations – MoMAG

The Mobile Money Advocacy Group Ghana (MoMAG) has expressed optimism that the removal of the e-levy will significantly enhance their business operations.

Finance Minister-Designate Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, during his recent vetting, announced plans to abolish the E-levy in the government’s first budget.

Speaking to Citi Business News at the induction ceremony for the association’s new executives, MoMAG President, Edward Ofori Agyemang said that scrapping the e-levy would encourage deposits from customers, which had previously declined due to the levy.

“Now that the government has said it is going to abolish it[e-levy], it is a happy moment for us and it is going to enhance our business. When there wasn’t E-levy, people used to come to the agents to deposit money and they will send it through their wallet . But when they introduced E-levy, when people come they say, we the agents should send the money straight because they want to avoid E-levy

“We are fighting that the government should take off the E-levy and we thank God the government is going to take off E-levy and it will help us. We also encourage more consumers to deposit money on their wallet, ”he added.

The E-levy, which was introduced as a tax on electronic financial transactions, sparked widespread criticism from citizens and businesses alike.

It was seen as a deterrent to the adoption of digital payment systems, especially among the unbanked population who relied heavily on mobile money services.

Industry stakeholders believe that eliminating the levy will not only boost mobile money usage but also contribute to broader economic activities, as more people will be inclined to use digital platforms for transactions.

The Bank of Ghana has meanwhile charged stakeholders in the mobile money sector to prioritise safeguarding the industry and ensuring its sustained growth.

Director of Fintech and Innovation at the Central Bank, Kwame Oppong, stressed that mobile money services are critical to advancing financial inclusion and expanding access to financial services for underserved populations.

“The lessons that I learnt from her [Mrs Eli Ohene Adu] all the way back to even those who even dreamt of this happening in Ghana and those who have walked this journey is that we collaborate and make sure we can carefully build a regulatory framework that ensures that as a Central Bank, no matter what we do a regulator is a regulator. We have to protect individuals and the sector first then we also have to figure out within that equation how we help you grow,” he said.

Kwame Oppong further disclosed that Ghana has been ranked as the best in the world for Mobile Money regulation, according to the 2024 GSMA Mobile Money Regulatory Index (MMRI).