Bank of Ghana explains why it reduced its gold reserves by half

The Bank of Ghana has confirmed a significant reduction in its gold holdings, cutting the share of bullion in its international reserves by about 51 per cent as it shifts towards foreign-currency assets to improve liquidity and investment returns.

The Governor, Dr Johnson P. Asiama, said the decision was taken after gold came to account for more than 40 per cent of total reserves, a level the Bank considered too concentrated.

“At the time, we were holding a little over 40 per cent so the decision was made to diversify, and that is what you see,” he said at the 128th Monetary Policy Committee press briefing in Accra.

Under the strategy, the central bank sold part of its gold holdings and reinvested the proceeds into income-earning foreign assets, a move Dr Asiama said has strengthened reserve accumulation rather than weakened it.

“The effects that were aimed at are there. It is earning dividends and contributing to reserve accumulation,” he added.

The cut in gold exposure comes even as global prices surged to record levels, with spot gold rising above US$5,200 an ounce in late January. However, the Governor cautioned that the rally may not be permanent.

“It is true gold prices have risen to record levels,” he said, adding that “what you see now may be more transitory and may not be permanent”.

Despite the lower bullion holdings, Ghana’s gross international reserves rose to US$13.8 billion at the end of December 2025, equivalent to 5.7 months of import cover, up from US$9.1 billion a year earlier.

Dr Asiama stressed that the move was a portfolio adjustment rather than a retreat from gold, noting that future decisions would be guided by what is structurally optimal for Ghana’s reserves.