Creditors of Produce Buying Company (PBC) Limited have begun physically removing haulage vehicles from the company’s premises in an active enforcement of a court judgment, escalating a protracted debt dispute over GH¢305.2 million owed to six commercial banks.
Approximately 32 haulage trucks are being taken from PBC’s premises, with some towed and others driven away, as the banks move toward auction to recover outstanding funds. The enforcement follows the dismissal of PBC’s latest application for a stay of execution on April 15, 2026, which cleared the final legal barrier to physical recovery.
The legal dispute traces back to a loan facility extended to PBC by a consortium of commercial banks to support its operations within the cocoa purchasing system. The courts ruled in favour of the banks in 2024, granting them the right to attach and sell PBC’s assets, and an Accra High Court dismissed a subsequent stay of execution application in early 2026, effectively removing the last obstacle to the asset sales.
The six creditor banks are GCB Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Ghana, Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), CalBank, Bank of Africa Ghana, and Universal Merchant Bank (UMB). The loans were originally extended to finance cocoa purchases, central to PBC’s function as a Licensed Buying Company within the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) supply chain.
The haulage vehicles being seized form part of PBC’s operational fleet used to transport cocoa from rural producing communities to national collection points. Most of the trucks are reported to be in poor condition, raising questions about whether their auction value will make a meaningful dent in the outstanding debt. Further enforcement actions against other assets remain a possibility.
PBC Limited was previously delisted from the Ghana Stock Exchange for regulatory non-compliance. Its auditors have warned of material uncertainty over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, while noting that title deeds for key sheds and buildings ceded to the company by COCOBOD have not been sighted to confirm ownership.
Government entities, including the Ministry of Finance and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), together hold approximately 75 percent of PBC shares. No indication of state intervention to support the company or restructure its obligations has emerged.
Industry players have indicated that government intervention may be required to prevent a collapse of the company’s operations, given its historical role in Ghana’s cocoa economy. Others argue that a negotiated settlement involving the government, COCOBOD, and the creditor banks may offer a more sustainable solution that protects the integrity of the cocoa supply chain while addressing the financial obligations owed to the banks.
The development raises broader questions about the financing model underpinning Ghana’s cocoa purchasing sector, where Licensed Buying Companies rely on short-term bank credit tied to commodity cycles. Delays in cash flows or operational failures can rapidly translate into debt distress, with consequences that extend beyond the companies themselves to the farmers and supply chains they serve.
