The Bank of Ghana has delivered some sobering news that underscores just how expensive monetary policy can become when a central bank fights to stabilize an economy. The institution recorded a staggering GH¢15.6 billion operating loss for 2025, representing a massive jump from the GH¢9.4 billion loss posted in 2024.
What particularly notable immediately was the scale of this deterioration. We are talking about an additional GH¢6.2 billion in losses within a single year, according to the Bank's 2025 audited financial statements released on Friday.
The Numbers Paint a Stark Picture
The central bank's negative equity position has worsened dramatically, ballooning from GH¢58.62 billion to GH¢93.82 billion. While total assets grew modestly to GH¢237 billion from GH¢215 billion, total liabilities surged much more aggressively from GH¢276 billion to GH¢333 billion.
These figures reveal the enormous cost of Ghana's monetary policy interventions. Money market liabilities more than doubled to GH¢93.8 billion, showing just how aggressively the Bank of Ghana had to intervene to maintain economic stability.
Multiple Factors Behind the Crisis
The Domestic Debt Exchange Programme significantly reduced returns on government securities, leading to what I would describe as a brutal drop in interest income. The Bank estimates that forgone income for 2025 exceeded GH¢12 billion.
Exchange rate movements delivered another painful blow. The nearly 40% appreciation of the cedi triggered a massive GH¢23.6 billion revaluation loss on gold, Special Drawing Rights and foreign securities.
Combined with a GH¢7.99 billion reclassification of gains on gold disposal, total Other Comprehensive Income recorded a loss of GH¢19.9 billion, compared to a gain of GH¢13.8 billion in 2024.
The disposal of some gold reserves did generate a GH¢9.57 billion gain, helping to offset part of an estimated GH¢9 billion net loss. Government deposits at the Bank fell sharply from GH¢29.9 billion to GH¢12.1 billion, while bridge facilities declined to zero from GH¢4.55 billion.
Auditors Remain Optimistic Despite Losses
KPMG, the auditors, maintained that the Bank remains operational despite these massive losses. This is crucial for maintaining confidence in Ghana's financial system and aligns with broader trends we have covered in our security coverage of African financial institutions.
In the view of the Board of Directors and Management, the policy solvency outcome for 2025 is consistent… that the Bank will continue to operate efficiently and effectively on a going concern basis and achieve its policy mandates, despite the loss recorded.
KPMG added that improving macroeconomic conditions could ease the pressure, noting that as inflation declines, interest rates will continue to decline, and as a result, the cost of Open Market Operations will reduce.
Looking Ahead to 2026
The Bank of Ghana does not expect a repeat of the 2025 losses. It projects that tighter monetary policy, lower inflation, and improved liquidity in the banking sector will reduce the need for aggressive interventions.
Planned legal reforms to limit central bank financing of government are also expected to strengthen fiscal discipline. The Bank reaffirmed compliance with the April 2023 zero-financing-of-budget agreement, with IMF-related liabilities dropping from GH¢33.0 billion to GH¢21.8 billion.
However, I remain cautious about the outlook. While the Bank cited improving conditions, global economic uncertainties continue to pose risks to Ghana's recovery trajectory, as we have discussed in our news analysis of African economies.