The Bank of Ghana is set to exit the gold trading business (small-scale gold transactions) from January 1, 2026.

This is what JOYBUSINESS has picked up from persons with knowledge of the activity at the Central Bank.

However, the Bank will continue its Domestic Gold Purchase Programme, but the small-scale segment will be ceded entirely to Goldbod.

JOYBUSINESS is learning that in November 2025, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Asiama, submitted a proposal to the board to exit the Artisanal Small-Scale Gold Mine (ASGM) gold trading business segment under the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP) and cede it fully to Goldbod. The proposal was approved.

Sources say the development should help the Bank of Ghana concentrate on other segments of the DGPP and on its core mandate of inflation targeting and price stability.

The source further stated that this decision had nothing to do with the IMF publication, insisting that it was taken in November 2025.

Another senior official at the bank told JOYBUSINESS that the opinion expressed by the IMF could be described as not accurate.

This senior official noted that “We are dealing with gold and FX markets which are dynamic, and these figures they put out are not audited figures.”

JOYBUSINESS understands that auditors of the Bank of Ghana are currently working on the books, and things could change by the end of the year.

Another senior official also told JOYBUSINESS that the Bank of Ghana is not financing the activities of GoldBod, adding that “what the Bank of Ghana is doing is just carrying out its Domestic Gold Purchase Programme through GoldBod as an agent.”

The Finance Minister, Dr Ato Forson, in the 2025 Budget advanced some GHC 4.4 billion to GoldBod, a move that will result in GoldBod completely taking over the operations, with the Bank of Ghana no longer incurring any cost, especially starting January 1, 2026.

It is expected that in 2026, GoldBod will control the entire gold supply chain and sell the gold proceeds in USD to the Bank of Ghana in exchange for cedis for subsequent gold purchases.

GoldBod exposure and loss claims

The Bank of Ghana has also described the “exposure loss” linked to its relationship with GoldBod, as cited by the IMF, as premature.

The Bank argues that “as we speak, we have not published our financials, so it might not be right, or let’s say fair, to say that due to our exposure to GoldBod, this loss has resulted.”

Another official argued that “whether we record a loss or a gain, that cannot be attributed to GoldBod exposure but rather to the markets.”

The Bank is of the view that its 2025 audited financials, when published, will show whether this level of losses has indeed been recorded.

A senior official at the Bank of Ghana also explained to JOYBUSINESS that when the new management of the Central Bank, led by Dr Johnson Asiama, came into office, there was already a contract with the Precious Minerals Marketing Company, as well as an existing framework for trading.

The official further explained that, for example, there was initially a discount of 5 percent for gold purchases, which was later reduced to 1.1 percent.

Background

The IMF, in its fifth staff review report, noted that operational costs from GoldBod, alongside trading shortfalls, have been identified as the major drivers behind losses under the Bank of Ghana’s Gold-for-Reserves (G4R) programme, which climbed to US$214 million within the first nine months of 2025.

According to the Fund, the losses were largely driven by trading losses incurred under the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) doré gold transactions component of the programme, as well as off-takers’ fees linked to GoldBod operations.

“In 2025 through end-Q3, losses from the artisanal and small-scale (ASM) doré gold transactions component of G4R have reached US$214 million, mostly on trading losses but also on GoldBod off-takers’ fees,” the report stated.