The Bank of Ghana has announced that it has not granted approval for the use of a cryptocurrency named "Freedom Coin" in the banking and payment sector.

This was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday, March 9 and signed by its Secretary, Sandra Thompson.

According to Central Bank, “It has come to the attention of Bank of Ghana that there is an impending launch of a cryptocurrency named "Freedom Coin". The public is hereby cautioned that neither this cryptocurrency nor the promoting company has approval from Bank of Ghana to operate in the banking and payment sector,'” portions of the notice read.

The Bank reiterated that “cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are not regulated under any laws in Ghana, and are therefore not backed by any guarantees or safeguards.”

This, according to the Bank is in line with notice NO.BG/GOV/SEC/2018/02 issued on 22nd January, 2018, which can be found on the Bank's website

The Bank cautioned, “the general public to exercise caution in respect of cryptocurrency transactions.”

It also directed “all licensed institutions including banks, specialized deposit-taking institutions, dedicated electronic money issuers and payment service providers to refrain from facilitating cryptocurrency transactions via their platforms or agent outlets.”