Regulatory breach flagged in ADB’s GH₵2 million Mercedes Benz E-class purchase for MD

While struggling to meet its capital adequacy requirements, triggering regulatory controls from the central bank, the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) last year spent GH₵2. 025 million to purchase a fully-loaded Top of the Range Mercedes-Benz E-Class for its new Managing Director Edward Ato Sarpong.

ADB, established by an Act of Parliament in 1965 to finance the development of agriculture in the country, purchased from CFAO Motors, the official local accredited dealers of Mercedes-Benz cars in Ghana, following requests by the MD for that class of vehicle for his mobility.

Sources have revealed that the purchase flouted the central bank’s regulatory limits for the bank, considering the circumstances surrounding the purchase.

Due to protracted liquidity challenges, the Bank of Ghana had placed ADB under its Proper Control Action (PCA) with a procurement limit of GHS 100,000 for any capital item. This meant that the procurement of any capital item beyond this limit by ADB needed approval from Bank of Ghana.

When ADB wrote to the Bank of Ghana for approval to purchase the official vehicle for the MD, the approval was granted for the purchase of a Mercedes-Benz E-class costing GHS 1.4 million. But somehow, ADB rather decided to purchase an E-Class Top-of-The—Range model, at the cost of GHS 2.025 million, which was GHS 625,000 (six hundred and twenty-five thousand cedis) higher than the amount approved by the central bank.

Amid this expenditure, ADB was struggling with its liquidity, prompting the government to pledge liquidity support for the bank in the 2026 budget.

Meanwhile, the bank had also failed to refurbish and reopen the Dansoman branch for business, denying itself revenue from that sprawling community with very high-net-worth individuals and businesses, despite the approval by the Bank of Ghana since February 2025 for ADB to relocate the branch.

Also, the bank had left the structure it had rented at East Legon at the tune of 450,000 dollars for five years unoccupied, although the rent period kicked in as of August 2025.

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Moreover, the bank is still heavily indebted to some of its major suppliers whose services are critical to its internal operations and organizational safety and security, while spending lavishly on the comfort of one person.

Analysts believe this kind of regulatory breach has long-term consequences for the bank if it goes unchecked.

Austerity is one of the pledges made to Ghanaians by the John Mahama-led government, with expenditure cuts implemented across the broad spectrum of government machinery.