If the planned electronic transaction levy (e-levy) is enacted in its current form, the Chief Executive Officer of Afb Ghana, the operators of MTN’s Qwikloan services, has warned that the company may cease to exist in a year.
The 1.75 percent tax on electronic financial transactions was suggested by Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta in his 2022 budget statement, which was delivered to Parliament on Wednesday, November 17, 2021.
The Minister explained that the tax measure was to raise revenue to support job creation initiatives, construction of road infrastructure, cybersecurity, and digital infrastructure.
Ken Ofori-Atta was hopeful that the proposal would come into full force from February 2022.
However, this proposal has been widely been kicked against by Ghanaians.
The minority group in Parliament rejected the 2022 budget as a result of the proposed e-Levy and other concerns raised in the budget.
MTN Ghana in partnership with Afb GHANA launched the “Qwikloan” service in 2017 to provide convenience to customers in times of need to enhance their business.
The service, dubbed, “Qwikloan” is fast, easy, and convenient which enables customers to access loans using their MTN mobile money platform.
Qwikloan is a 30-day loan. It has flexible payment terms with an interest of 6.9% but a default payment of 12.5% interest charges. It does not need a bank account and guarantor to access it.
However, a Facebook post on November 30, 2021, by the CEO of Afb Ghana Arnold Parker to celebrate four years anniversary, forewarned that the service will fold up should the government go ahead with the e-levy in the current shape.
“Four years ago today, together with our partners MTN and Jump, we launched what has arguably become Ghana’s most utilised financial product -Quick loan. In the 4 years that Quickloan has been in existence, we have disbursed over Ghc7billion to well over 4.2 million people. Interesting that the Quickloan anniversary comes at a time when heated discussion on the e-Levy rages on,” Arnold Parker stated.
He continued “If I plug in the proposed e-Levy rate into our financials, Quickloan would cease to exist within a year. Yet it is a product like Qwikloan, which has been a lifesaver for millions in their times of need, that has the potential to transform this economy”.
Arnold Parker has in an earlier post advised against free things by the government.
“Let’s turn our attention to building our economy now. A country that’s supposed to have a GDP of $600 billion should not be ok when its GDP is $60 billion. For many decades now we have operated way below our potential and robbed millions of our kith and Skin a decent life. The more free things we promise the people, the more businesses we must allow to flourish to find the freebies. It is time to build and grow Ghanaian businesses.
