The value of debt and equity security holdings held by foreign investors increased significantly in 2021.

According to the 2022 Financial Stability Review, foreign investors’ debt holdings increased to ₵31.7 billion at the end of December 2021, as compared to ₵28.8 billion at end-December 2020.

The value of foreign investors’ equity holdings also increased to ₵6.32 billion at end-December 2021, from GH₵4.82 billion at end-December 2020.

The significant increase in the debt holdings of foreign investors put excessive pressure on the cedi anytime there is a shock to the economy.

The increase, the report said, was attributable to the rise in prices of equities on the domestic market, partially owing to the stock market recovery from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Total value of government debt securities hit ₵152.72bn

The total value of Government of Ghana (GoG) and corporate debt securities outstanding increased in 2021, as compared to the previous year.

The total value of GoG and corporate debt securities outstanding as of the end of 2021 were ₵152.72 billion and ₵31.36 billion respectively, compared to ₵120.69 billion GoG and ₵ 27.07 billion corporate bonds outstanding in the previous year.

This represents an increase of 26.5% and 15.9% for GoG and corporate bonds, respectively.

The market share of outstanding securities for GoG and corporates was 83.0% and 17.3% respectively in 2021. This is compared to 81.7% and 18.3% respectively in the previous year.