Running a susu for friends is one thing. Collecting from the public and keeping it for them for a fee is another, and the Bank of Ghana regulates the second. This page sets out what the Bank's own notice says, what we could not find, and where to ask.
Written 8 October 2026 from the Bank of Ghana's notice and the text of Act 774. We found no newer susu-specific rule; the regime may have changed, so confirm with the Bank before you start. Not legal advice.
The Bank's "Operating Rules and Guidelines for Microfinance Institutions" (Notice No. BG/GOV/SEC/2011/04, issued under the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Act 2008 and the Banking Act 2004; Bank of Ghana, the PDF read read 8 Oct 2026) covers susu. In it:
The Act itself (Act 774, read read 8 Oct 2026) says no one may provide the services in its First Schedule without a licence (section 2), and it does not apply to small microfinance operators whose risk assets are below the amount the Bank sets and whose funds do not include public deposits, or to anyone else the Bank excludes by notice (section 1). The word "susu" does not appear in the Act: the susu rules are in the Bank's notice.
A 2011 news summary of the notice put the minimum paid-up capital for a susu company (a higher tier) at GH₵ 100,000 under that regime (MyJoyOnline, July 2011); the figure is 15 years old and we found no current one. In 2015 the GCSCA said it had over 500 members, of whom 363 held Bank licences (MyJoyOnline, April 2015), and a 2016 study reported by Graphic found 69% of collectors unlicensed (Graphic, January 2016), with the Bank declining to give the association powers to sanction (Graphic, February 2016). In July 2021 the Bank warned non-compliant operators (B&FT, July 2021). All are secondary reports and old.
The customary arrangement, as one reference summarises it, is that the collector returns the month's savings and keeps one day's contribution as the fee (Wikipedia). The Bank's notice says only that refunds are made "for a fee", with no amount. Agree the fee with each member before collecting, and write it down.
Free notebook for your money. No password, no MoMo PIN, no Ghana Card.
The Bank of Ghana regulates susu collection from the public. Its 2011 notice puts individual collectors and registered susu enterprises in a fourth tier with no minimum capital, requires them to join an umbrella body such as the GCSCA, and requires a licence renewed each year. Companies sit in a higher tier with a minimum capital reported in 2011. Confirm today's requirements with the Bank.
Ask the Bank what applies to your plan, join the GCSCA, register a name with "susu" in it if you are an enterprise, agree the terms with each member in writing, and keep a daily book and member cards from day one. The steps on this page set that order.
We did not find one. Ask the Bank of Ghana for its current application requirements, and send the application the way it tells you.
The umbrella body for susu collectors that the Bank's notice names as an example of the association every collector in the fourth tier must join. It also gives the Bank periodic statistics under the notice.
Customarily one day's contribution per member per month, as one reference summarises it. The Bank gives no figure, and we found no published figure for total earnings.
Written 8 October 2026. Every fact is linked where it is used, with the date it was read. General information, not legal or financial advice. Questions: message us on WhatsApp.