Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta has said the toughest decision he has had to take since becoming a public officer, was authorising the takeover of Capital Bank and UT Bank.

“It was difficult [for me] because these are also indigenous firms with entrepreneurs who take risks,” Mr. Ofori Atta told Joy Business.

The Bank of Ghana in August, selected GCB Bank to take over operations of the two distressed financial institutions, as a result of non-performing loans given out to customers.

Mr. Ofori Atta said despite the challenge he faced giving the approval, he had to act in the interest of the state and save the investments of “about some 300,000 or so depositors”.

“That really for me is what the Ministry should exemplify. Looking at the big issues; what is good for Ghana and then we’ll solve the little personal things that may come up,” he said.

He assured of the government's commitment to improving the environment so that managers of financial institutions will be provided with the needed capacity to avoid things “like the DKMs to rear their head again”.

“That truly, if there had been a little bit of ‘laissez faire’ attitude in the banking sector let’s come back together and make it stronger,” the Finance Minister advised.