Ghana Commercial Bank is positioning itself as a payment gateway for the country’s growing army of TikTok content creators, potentially eliminating costly middlemen that currently eat into their earnings.
Bank officials met Communications Minister Samuel Nartey George on Monday to pitch a comprehensive payment framework that would allow creators to receive TikTok earnings directly through local banking channels. The proposal comes as Ghana’s digital creative economy continues expanding, with thousands of local creators building substantial followings on the Chinese-owned platform.
Chief of Staff Abraham Ferguson led the GCB delegation, emphasizing the bank’s technical readiness to handle creator payouts. The institution already maintains robust connections with MasterCard and Visa networks, enabling direct card payments alongside mobile money transfers and traditional bank account deposits.
“The bank possesses robust connectivity with MasterCard and Visa, enabling it to accept and make payments directly onto cards,” Ferguson explained, highlighting GCB’s existing infrastructure for handling digital transactions.
The initiative aims to create transparent earning channels for Ghanaian creators, particularly from TikTok’s gift system and monetization features that currently require expensive third-party processors. Many creators lose significant portions of their income to intermediary fees, limiting their ability to build sustainable creative businesses.
Minister George actively endorsed the proposal during subsequent discussions with TikTok’s West Africa representative, Tokumbo Ibrahim. He argued that establishing GCB as an official payment channel would boost creator confidence while strengthening Ghana’s digital economy foundations.
“This will ensure greater financial benefit for Ghanaian talent while deepening confidence in the digital economy,” the minister emphasized, noting the potential to reduce creator dependency on costly external payment services.
Ibrahim responded positively to the framework proposal, committing to review its feasibility while ensuring compliance with regional regulatory requirements. TikTok has shown increasing interest in localizing payment solutions across African markets as creator communities continue growing.
Ferguson expressed optimism about moving forward quickly if TikTok approves the partnership. Technical teams from both organizations would then work to establish direct system integration, subject to oversight from Ghana’s financial regulators.
The potential collaboration reflects broader trends as traditional banks seek partnerships with digital platforms to capture growing creator economy revenues. For Ghana, success could position the country as a regional leader in creator monetization infrastructure.
Source: newsghana.com.gh
