Bank of Ghana (BoG) Governor Dr Johnson Asiama has dismissed suggestions that the central bank has handed over its foreign exchange market responsibilities to the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBOD), insisting that it remains prepared to intervene when necessary to maintain market stability.
He said the Bank’s focus on building international reserves, with GoldBOD supporting foreign exchange intermediation and market supply, should not be interpreted as an abandonment of its core functions.
“We want to focus on reserve build-up while Goldbod supports with FX intermediation as well as some level of intervention for the market,” he said.
Dr Asiama explained that the central bank would step into the market when necessary, particularly when excessive volatility threatened orderly trading conditions.
He was speaking at a meeting with institutional investors, brokers and fund managers organised by Standard Bank at the Conrad Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand, on the sidelines of the annual IMF–World Bank meetings.
BoG clarifies GoldBOD’s role in forex market
The Governor was responding to questions about the respective roles of the Bank of Ghana and GoldBOD in foreign exchange intermediation and the implications for the stability of the cedi.
Some market watchers have questioned GoldBOD’s role, citing provisions of the Bank of Ghana Act, the foreign exchange operations framework and the Constitution.
The issue also featured at a recent hearing of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, where GoldBOD’s Chief Executive appeared.
Addressing the concerns, Dr Asiama said GoldBOD was supporting the central bank rather than taking over its responsibilities.
He explained that foreign exchange inflows channelled through GoldBOD would ordinarily have entered the market, but under the revised framework, the Board was directing those inflows to support foreign exchange supply.
The Governor praised GoldBOD’s contribution, describing it as particularly valuable under current conditions, and assured investors that there was no cause for alarm.
“I have been wondering why we had not set up Goldbod long ago,” he said, adding that developments so far justified its establishment.
GoldBOD sells $452m to commercial banks
Since the beginning of October 2026, GoldBOD has sold approximately US$452 million to commercial banks through its GoFX platform, which conducts foreign exchange sales twice a week.
The platform supports electronic submissions, allocation processing, time-stamping, transaction histories and audit trails.
The programme operates under the Bank of Ghana’s regulatory oversight. The central bank will have real-time access to the platform, while GoldBOD is required to submit transaction reports after each sale.
Under its revised foreign exchange programme, GoldBOD plans to generate about US$1.5 billion in October. Of that amount, US$1 billion is earmarked for sale to commercial banks, while US$500 million will be transferred to the Bank of Ghana to support reserve accumulation.
The central bank has indicated that it does not anticipate running its own foreign exchange intermediation programme but remains ready to intervene to maintain orderly market conditions.
In a September communication to market participants, the Bank reiterated its preparedness to undertake foreign exchange interventions where necessary while preserving overall exchange rate flexibility.
Asiama expects cedi conditions to normalise
The cedi has faced sustained pressure in recent months, although it has stabilised marginally over the past two weeks. Its year-to-date depreciation stands at 10.33 per cent.
Responding to investors’ concerns, Dr Asiama described the recent pressure as a marginal blip and expressed confidence that market conditions would normalise.
He attributed some of the pressure to profit-taking by multinational companies and other businesses, adding that ongoing reforms should help restore stability.
The Governor reiterated that the central bank would intervene when necessary to prevent excessive volatility in the foreign exchange market.
BoG targets six months of import cover by December
On Ghana’s gross international reserves, which stood at approximately US$12.04 billion as of September 22, 2026, Dr Asiama said the Bank remained committed to its reserve accumulation programme.
He acknowledged that energy-sector payments had put pressure on reserves in recent months but maintained that Ghana was on track to meet its year-end targets under the IMF-supported Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI).
Dr Asiama said the country would achieve the programme’s target of six months of import cover by December.
He told investors that reserve accumulation was intended to strengthen Ghana’s capacity to withstand less favourable external conditions, including a significant decline in global gold prices.
The Governor said the additional buffers would help protect the economy against external shocks and support exchange rate stability under more challenging conditions.
