In the exercise of the powers conferred on the Securities and Exchange Commission (hereinafter referred to as the “SEC”) by sections 3 and 209 of the Securities Industry Act, 2016 (Act 929), as amended by the Securities Industry (Amendment) Act, 2021 (Act 1062),  and pursuant to section 71 of the Virtual Asset Providers Act, 2025 (Act 1154), these Guidelines are issued this 9th day of March 2026.

1. INTRODUCTION

1. The SEC, pursuant to its mandate to regulate and promote the development of an efficient, fair and transparent market, seeks to encourage responsible innovation by permitting capital market activities, products, services and business models to be tested in a controlled environment, with the potential for wider adoption in Ghana and beyond, while ensuring investor protection, market integrity and financial stability.
2. These Guidelines shall establish a controlled, live testing environment under the Regulatory Sandbox, subject to defined eligibility criteria, parameters, safeguards, reporting obligations, and supervisory oversight as determined by the SEC. Participation in the Regulatory Sandbox shall be subject to such terms, conditions and restrictions as the SEC may impose.
3. The Regulatory Sandbox shall operate in a risk-based, proportionate and technology-neutral manner, having regard to the nature, scale, complexity and risks of the innovation, and the need to ensure investor protection, market integrity and financial stability.
4. For the avoidance of doubt, these Guidelines shall apply to any innovation, arrangement, activity, entity, system, platform, infrastructure or related function that falls within or relates to the regulatory mandate of the SEC, whether technology-enabled or otherwise, including activities conducted wholly or partly within Ghana or having an impact on the Ghanaian capital market or investors.
5. The SEC shall determine the applicability of these Guidelines and may, where necessary, issue notices, directives, supplementary guidance or impose additional requirements, conditions, or safeguards for their effective implementation and supervision.
6. These Guidelines supersede and replace any previous guidelines or requirements on Regulatory Sandbox in the capital market including Securities Industry (Regulatory Sandbox Licensing) Guidelines 2020 with number SEC/GUI/006/10/2020 issued on 8th day of October 2020.

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE GUIDELINES

1. These Guidelines shall provide a framework for the issuance of Regulatory Sandbox Licences to facilitate the testing of innovative capital market activities, products, services, business models, market infrastructure, or related services for which existing legal or regulatory provisions may be absent, inadequate or evolving.
2. The objectives of the Regulatory Sandbox include, without limitation, to:

• • facilitate responsible innovation that delivers demonstrable value to investors and the capital market;
  • ensure appropriate safeguards for investor protection, market integrity and financial stability;
  • enable controlled and time-bound testing of innovative capital market solutions, including those involving virtual or digital assets and other emerging technologies, within a risk-based, proportionate and technology-neutral regulatory framework;
  • enable the SEC to assess risks, operational models, and regulatory implications of emerging technologies, business models, and capital market arrangements; and
  • support the development of appropriate regulatory frameworks, supervisory approaches, and policy responses based on evidence obtained from Sandbox testing.

Download the full Securities Industry (Regulatory Sandbox Licensing) Guidelines 2026