REITs could unlock diaspora, pension fund capital — SEC....Open up domestic properties, stock market

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) could open Ghana’s commercial property market to pension funds and the diaspora while helping to deepen the country’s capital market.

The Deputy Director-General, Finance, at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mensah Thompson, said structured property investment vehicles had the potential to mobilise pools of capital that had traditionally not been used easily in large-scale real estate projects.

He made the remarks at the launch of Rangoon Real Estate Investment Trust PLC, a property investment vehicle that manages two assets in Cantonments City, a development owned by Goldkey Properties.

Mr Thompson said REITs enabled long-term savings to be channelled into productive assets such as commercial property, housing and urban infrastructure.

He explained that the structure offered investors a more accessible route to property ownership.

A REIT is a company that owns, operates or finances income-producing property.

Similar to a mutual fund, it pools capital from multiple investors and distributes income generated from rents and property assets as dividends.

For many investors, particularly those living abroad, property remains one of the most familiar and trusted investment classes.

However, direct ownership often requires significant capital commitments and management responsibilities, limiting participation to a small group of investors.

REITs allow investors to buy shares in professionally managed portfolios of income-generating buildings, giving them exposure to property markets without the operational burden of owning and managing property directly.

Diaspora inflows

The SEC believes the model could appeal strongly to Ghana’s diaspora community.

Annual remittances to the country reached about US$7.8 billion in 2025, equivalent to roughly six per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the period.

Much of that capital has historically gone into individual residential construction projects, often outside formal investment structures.

Mr Thompson said REITs could channel part of those funds into institutional-grade commercial property assets.

“In many markets around the world, REITs have played an important role in linking capital markets with real estate development,” he said.

Globally, REITs represent a mature asset class valued at about US$4.6 trillion.

In developed markets, they serve as a major channel for institutional investment in property, covering sectors such as office buildings, shopping centres, logistics hubs, data centres and healthcare facilities.

The Rangoon vehicle represents one of the most visible efforts in recent years to establish such structures in Ghana.

Both properties under the trust are leased to multinational tenants under long-term agreements.

Prime commercial property in Accra currently offers rental yields estimated between eight per cent and 11 per cent, compared with about four per cent to 5.5 per cent typically recorded in more mature global markets.

Pension fund opportunity

The initiative could also create opportunities for Ghana’s pension industry, which manages growing pools of long-term savings.

Total pension assets under management were estimated at about GH¢100 billion in early 2026.

Guidelines issued by the National Pensions Regulatory Authority require pension schemes to allocate at least five per cent of their portfolios to alternative assets.

This requirement could potentially create a domestic investment pool of roughly GH¢5 billion for vehicles such as REITs.

REITs allow pension funds to invest in property without taking on the operational risks associated with direct development or asset management.

For developers, the structure offers an additional source of financing beyond traditional bank lending.

Broadening participation

The Executive Director of Goldkey Properties and Group Chief Operating Officer of CH Group, Cynthia Darko Acquaye, said the REIT had been designed to widen participation in high-quality commercial real estate.

She said the Huawei Building and the PwC Tower were developed to meet the requirements of multinational tenants.

“The trust provides investors with an opportunity to participate in the ownership of these assets,” she said.

Goldkey Properties will retain a majority stake in the assets while outside investors will participate through shares in the trust.

The founder of Goldkey Properties and Executive Chairman of CH Group, Kwaku Bediako, said the initiative demonstrated that locally developed property assets could be integrated into institutional investment structures.

“REITs are not simply investment products. They are economic infrastructure and we are confident in what the Rangoon REIT is going to do,” he said.

Mr Thompson said investor protection would remain central to the development of the REIT market.

He said the structures operated under a regulatory framework that required regular disclosures, independent audits and continuous oversight.

“These safeguards promote accountability and strengthen confidence in the market,” he said.