Economic advisor to President John Mahama, Seth Terkper, has maintained that the government remains committed to maintaining the required fiscal discipline to help fast-track the Bank of Ghana’s recovery.

Mr Terkper argued that it is in the interest of government to ensure the Bank of Ghana is in a strong position to perform its functions and effectively play its role as the lender of last resort.

The former minister of finance disclosed this on PM EXPRESS BUSINESS EDITION with host George Wiafe on May 7, 2026.

The economic advisor to President John Mahama noted that “if the government found it critical to work hard to improve our ratings and boost reserves to stabilise the currency, then it stands fairly to reason that this government will do everything to help restore the balance sheet of the Bank of Ghana.”

Mr Terkper also argued that people should not forget where the country is coming from in terms of the Bank of Ghana’s situation, the work that has been done over the years, and the bank’s contribution to stabilising the economy.

Background

The Bank of Ghana posted an operating loss of GH¢15.6 billion for 2025, up from GH¢9.4 billion in 2024.

This marks an increase of about GH¢6.2 billion, according to the bank’s 2025 audited financial statements released on Friday.

Negative equity worsened significantly, rising from GH¢58.62 billion to GH¢93.82 billion.

Total assets grew to GH¢237 billion from GH¢215 billion in 2024. Total liabilities also surged from GH¢276 billion to GH¢333 billion.

The spike in losses was largely driven by the cost of monetary policy operations.

Open Market Operations rose sharply by about 95% to GH¢16.7 billion. Sterilisation liabilities to commercial banks jumped 186% to GH¢93.6 billion, while money market liabilities more than doubled to GH¢93.8 billion.

The bank said the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme reduced returns on government securities, leading to a sharp drop in interest income. Forgone income for 2025 is estimated to exceed GH¢12 billion.

Concerns over the pace of mopping up

The Bank of Ghana has come under criticism, especially from the minority in Parliament, over the pace of its liquidity mop-up operations aimed at helping check inflation through open market operations.

But speaking on the programme, Mr Terkper maintained that the situation warranted those tough measures.

He noted that “there are other countries that have gone through this route, and there are examples of countries that adopted the gradualist approach, and the results are there for all of us.”

Recapitalisation of the Bank of Ghana

According to the Finance Ministry, the government’s recapitalisation programme, to be implemented under the Bank of Ghana Amendment Act 1158, will further strengthen the bank’s financial resilience by augmenting its capital base and reducing the sensitivity of its solvency position to short-term income fluctuations.

On January 6, 2025, the Ministry of Finance signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Bank of Ghana, effective January 7, 2025.

The Memorandum of Understanding was designed to provide arrangements on how the government intends to support the reversal of the bank’s negative equity position.

This recapitalisation framework will take effect upon the government implementing a recapitalisation plan that restores the bank’s total equity to at least the level of authorised capital, or by December 31, 2032, whichever occurs first.

Speaking on PM Express Business Edition, the former minister of finance noted that the government remains fully committed to the plan agreed upon between the Bank of Ghana and the finance ministry.

He, however, rejected proposals that the government should review the timelines for fully recapitalising the Bank of Ghana, despite the magnitude of the operating loss.