We haven’t handed over our forex role to Goldbod – BoG Governor Asiama

The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr Johnson Asiama, has dismissed suggestions that the central bank has relinquished its foreign exchange market responsibilities to the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), insisting that the Bank remains prepared to intervene when necessary to maintain orderly market conditions.

Dr Asiama explained that the central bank’s current focus on accumulating international reserves, alongside GoldBod’s role in foreign exchange intermediation and supplying the market, should not be interpreted as an abandonment of its core mandate.

“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.

He stressed that the Bank of Ghana would enter the foreign exchange market whenever necessary, particularly when excessive volatility threatens orderly trading.

The Governor made the remarks during 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 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank meetings.

Dr Asiama’s comments followed questions from investors about the respective responsibilities of the Bank of Ghana and GoldBod in foreign exchange intermediation and the implications of their arrangement for the stability of the cedi.

Some market participants have raised concerns about GoldBod’s role, citing provisions of the Bank of Ghana Act, the foreign exchange operations framework and the Constitution.

The matter has also featured in a recent hearing of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, during which GoldBod’s Chief Executive appeared.

Responding to the concerns, Dr Asiama maintained that GoldBod was supporting the central bank rather than taking over its responsibilities.

He explained that the foreign exchange inflows channelled through GoldBod would ordinarily have entered the market. Under the revised arrangement, the GoldBod mechanism directs those inflows towards improving foreign exchange supply.

The Governor praised GoldBod’s contribution, describing its support as particularly valuable under prevailing market conditions. He also sought to reassure investors that the arrangement should not be a cause for concern.

“I have been wondering why we had not set up GoldBod long ago,” he said, adding that developments so far had justified its establishment.

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 facilitates electronic submissions, allocation processing, time-stamping, transaction histories and audit trails to support the administration and monitoring of foreign exchange transactions.

The programme operates under the regulatory oversight of the Bank of Ghana. The central bank is expected to have real-time access to the platform, while GoldBod submits transaction reports following each sale.

Under its revised foreign exchange programme, GoldBod plans to generate approximately US$1.5 billion in October.

Of this amount, US$1 billion is earmarked for sale to commercial banks, while the remaining US$500 million is intended for transfer to the Bank of Ghana to support international reserve accumulation.

Although the central bank does not anticipate operating its own foreign exchange intermediation programme, Dr Asiama said it remained ready to intervene whenever necessary to maintain orderly market conditions.

In a September communication to market participants, the Bank reiterated its preparedness to undertake foreign exchange interventions where required, while maintaining overall exchange rate flexibility.

The cedi has faced pressure in recent months, although it has recorded some stabilisation over the past two weeks. Its year-to-date depreciation stands at 10.33 per cent, according to the figures cited in the report.

Addressing investors’ concerns, Dr Asiama described the recent pressure as a marginal blip and expressed optimism that market conditions would normalise.

He attributed part of the pressure to profit-taking by multinational companies and other businesses, while indicating that ongoing policy reforms should help restore stability.

The Governor reiterated that the Bank of Ghana would not hesitate to intervene if necessary to prevent excessive volatility in the foreign exchange market.

His comments come as authorities seek to improve foreign exchange supply, rebuild reserves and strengthen confidence in the cedi amid concerns about market pressures.

Dr Asiama also reaffirmed the central bank’s commitment to building Ghana’s gross international reserves, which stood at approximately US$12.04 billion as of September 22, 2026.

He acknowledged that payments associated with the energy sector had placed pressure on reserves in recent months but maintained that the Bank remained on course to meet its year-end targets under the IMF-supported Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI).

The Governor said Ghana was expected to achieve the programme’s target of six months of import cover by December 2026.

He explained that reserve accumulation was intended to strengthen the country’s ability to withstand less favourable external conditions, including a substantial decline in international gold prices.

According to Dr Asiama, building adequate reserves would provide the financial buffers needed to protect the economy against external shocks and support exchange rate stability under more challenging conditions.

The central bank’s strategy therefore combines reserve accumulation with a commitment to intervene when market conditions warrant it, while GoldBod continues to support foreign exchange supply through its GoFX platform.