Section 20, The Banking Act, 1964

(1) Every licensed bank in Sierra Leone shall maintain at alltimes such an amount of specified liquid assets as may from time to time be prescribed by the Central Bank in writing to each licensed bank and in the Gazette. The minimum amount or amounts o the assets so prescribed shall be expressed as a percentage or per centages which such assets shall bear, either jointly or separately to the gross demand and time liabilities to the public of each bank No bank shall be required to due in Sierra Leone currency. maintain a higher percentage than any other bank. For the purposes of this section, advances granted to a bank by any otica bank or by an overseas branch or office of the same bank, shalloe Cxcluded from any computation of that bank's demand and ine liabilities. No, 19 Banking 1964 (2) Whenever the Central Bank issues a notice under subscction () varying the percentages of liquid assets to be held by cach bank, cach bank shall be allowed such uniform period of grace, being not less than fourteen working days, as may be specified in such noticc, in which to comply with the provisions thereof. (3) For the purpose of computing the amount of specified liquid assets to be held under this section by a liccnsed bank in Sierra Leone whose Head Offiee is outside Sierra Leone the offices and branches in Sierra Leone of such bank shall be deemcd to constitute a scparate bank. assets (4) For the purposes of this section specified liquid shall consist of freely transferable assets free from any charge or lien whatsocver of all or any of the following classes in such proportions as the Central Bank may from time to time pre scribe by notice in the Gazetie, namely (a) notes and coin which are legal tender in Sierra Leone; (b) balances at the Central Bank; (c) net balances at any other bank in Sierra Leoneand money at call in Sierra Leone; (d) Treasury Bills issued by the Government and maturing within ninety-three days; (e) inland bills of exchange and promissory notes which are eligible for re-discount at the Central Bank, subject to such limitations in amount as the Central Bank may from time to time prescribe; O net balances at any bank, including the offices and branches of a bank, in such monetary areas as the Central Bank may approve for the purpose; (g) money at call in monetary areas approved by the Central Bank under paragraph (), bills of exchange bearing at Jeast two good signatures drawn on and payable at any place in the approved monetary area, and Treasury Bills issued by the Government of a country in any such approved monetary area and maturing within one hundred and eighty-four days. (5) A bank shall be held to be guilty of an offence if (a) it fails to furnish within a reasonable time any information required by the Central Bank to satisfy the CentralBank that the bank is observing the requirements ofsubsection (); or (b) it allows its holding of specified liquid assets to be lessthan is from time to time prescribed by the Central Bank; or (c) during the period of any such deficiency of specifiedliquid assets the bank grants or permits increases inadvances or overdrafts without the prior approval otthe Central Bank. A 165 A 166 Selective control Over advances, Disquali fication of directors, etc. (6) Any bank which commits an offence under subsection (5) shall be liable on conviction to a fine of fifty pounds (a) for every day during which a default under paragraph (a) thereof exists; (b) for every day during which a deficiency under paragraph (6) thercof exists, and (c) for every offence under paragraph (c) thereof. 21. ) The Central Bank may from time to time prescribe by written notice to every bank the maXiMum amount of loans and advances which a licensed bank may have outstanding during such period or periods as may be specified in the notice, provided that such amounts shall not in respect of any bank be less than the amount of loans and advances outstanding in the books of that bank at the date of issue of the notice. (2) A notice issued under subsection (1) may be made applicable to allloans and advances or to any specified class or classes of such loans and advances: Provided that any directives contained in such notice shall apply equally to every bank. (3) A notice issued under subsection (1) shall come into effect on a date to be specified in the notice which shall be not less than thirty days after the date of issue. PART VGENERAL