IMF puts BoG’s Gold Reserve Programme loss at $1.7bn despite gains in reserves

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has estimated that the Bank of Ghana (BoG) incurred about $1.7 billion in balance-sheet losses through its Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP), even as the initiative helped significantly strengthen the country’s international reserves.

The IMF assessment has brought into focus the financial cost of a strategy that saw the central bank use domestic gold purchases to build its reserve buffers during Ghana’s economic recovery.

BoG data show that Ghana’s gross international reserves increased from $10.30 billion in March 2025 to $13.83 billion by December 2025.

The increase pushed the country’s import cover from 4.5 months to 5.7 months, giving the central bank a stronger buffer to manage external pressures.

Under the IMF-supported programme, programme-defined international reserves also increased from $7.70 billion to $11.91 billion over the same period.

The stronger reserve position gave the BoG greater capacity to intervene in the foreign exchange market, provide liquidity during periods of high demand and strengthen confidence in Ghana’s ability to meet its external obligations.

The improvement in reserves coincided with a sharp recovery in the performance of the Ghanaian cedi.

After suffering significant depreciation during the economic crisis, with the currency trading above GH¢16 to the US dollar in late 2022, the cedi appreciated by 40.7 per cent against the dollar in 2025.

The currency’s recovery was supported by several factors, including tighter monetary policy, fiscal consolidation, stronger export earnings and renewed investor confidence.

The increase in international reserves also came against the backdrop of a stronger external position.

Ghana recorded total exports of $31.25 billion in 2025, with gold accounting for $20.98 billion of the total.

The country also recorded a trade surplus of $13.80 billion and a current account surplus of $9.39 billion during the year.

These developments helped reduce pressure on the foreign exchange market and complemented the gains achieved through the accumulation of international reserves.

However, the IMF has raised concerns about the financial and commercial risks of having the central bank directly involved in gold purchases and trading.

While acknowledging that the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme contributed to the strengthening of Ghana’s reserve buffers, the Fund argued that the associated commercial and valuation risks should not remain on the Bank of Ghana’s balance sheet.

The estimated $1.7 billion loss therefore represents a significant financial cost of the programme, even though the strategy contributed to a much stronger reserve position.

The development has prompted a change in Ghana’s institutional approach to domestic gold purchases.

Rather than ending the strategy, policymakers have moved to separate the reserve-building objective from the commercial aspects of gold trading.

Under the new arrangement, GoldBod is expected to take responsibility for the operational and commercial risks associated with domestic gold purchases, while the Bank of Ghana focuses on its core monetary policy and reserve management functions.

The transfer represents a major shift in Ghana’s approach to using domestic gold as a tool for strengthening international reserves.

The objective of building reserve buffers through Ghana’s gold resources remains, but the responsibility for commercial gold transactions is being moved away from the central bank.

The experience therefore highlights the trade-off involved in the strategy: the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme came at a substantial cost to the Bank of Ghana, but it also coincided with a period of stronger reserves, improved external balances and significant gains in the stability of the cedi.

Prince Antwi

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