“It hurts to see those who stole my money enjoying good lives” – Gold Coast Fund Management victim

One of the suffering masses of the defunct Gold Coast Fund Management Limited owned by politician and business magnate, Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, has narrated how peeved she has been over the past five years for not being able to access her lifetime investments.

Customers of the defunct fund manager have had their funds locked with the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC).

According to the victim, she is filled with pain anytime she sees the people who took her money living a good life while she wallows in poverty.

Mrs Rosemond Greensky narrated how sordid the life of her husband has become after 35 years of working with Ashanti Goldfields in the Ashanti Region.

”Because all lifetime investments have been locked up with SEC,” she soberly said.

“I cannot stand it seeing them living a good life for us who gave them our money as investments suffering,” she stressed.

She explained the husband has lost everything because he invested his lumpsum with the fund management company.

She narrated her predicament on The Citizens Show on Accra 100.5 FM hosted by Kwabena Bobie Ansah on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, after scores of customers of the defunct fund management company picketed the premise of the regulator, Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to demand payment of their locked up funds, Tuesday, May 2, 2023.

“We cannot afford two square meals a day and let alone pay the fees of our children,” she lamented.

She noted that she had the cause to question God why he should allow such a calamity to befall her as a Christian.

“I used to help people and now when they come and I say I cannot afford to help, they don’t understand because I don’t have it,” she said, adding: “I have been turned into squalor because I invested my money in an investment scheme.”

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 31, 2020, says it will commence payment of customers’ locked-up investments in September of this year.

The SEC said this will cover 22 financial institutions for which it has been able to validate the claims of depositors.

“Out of the 50 companies whose licences remain revoked, three did not have any claims filed against them, leaving 47 companies against whom claims were filed by affected clients,” the SEC said in a statement.

“As of 26 August 2020, a total of 98,820 claims valued at ¢10.83 billion have been received,” it added, indicating: “The Commission has full access to the records of 40 of these companies, partial access to one company and no access to the remaining six companies.”

SEC added that validation of the claims filed by the clients of the 40 collapsed financial institutions “where we have full access to their records has been completed.”

No access to data

The SEC said it does not have access to the records of six companies: Firstbanc Financial Services, Kripa Capital, EM Capital, Omega Capital, Nickel Keynesbury and Heritage Securities (Future PIP Management Ltd.).

“Validation of claims on Firstbanc Financial Services Limited is yet to commence because of their initial failure to cooperate with SEC and the filing of an application for an injunction pending appeal at the High Court,” the Commission said.

“Claims filed against Firstbanc Financial Services Limited was 423 valued at ¢800 million.

“We are in the process of resolving the issues to get full access to the records of the remaining five firms.

The claims filed against these five firms is 489 valued at ¢87 million,” SEC explained.

Partial access

The Commission said it had partial access to records from Blackshield Capital Management Ltd (formerly Gold Coast Fund Management Ltd), as the company provided Excel data representing roughly 3% of claims filed by their clients.

SEC said Blackshield Capital Management Ltd initially failed to assist in locating the server for validating the remaining 97% of claims until the intervention of law-enforcement agencies.

The claims filed against Blackshield Capital Management Ltd totalled 82,204 and were valued at ¢4.65 billion.