By Kwabena Adu Koranteng, Financial and Economic Journalist
Ghana’s economic managers are facing renewed scrutiny after the Bank of Ghana and its subsidiaries posted a staggering negative equity position of GH¢93.82 billion as of December 31, 2025, a sharp deterioration from GH¢58.62 billion recorded in 2024.
The alarming figure, disclosed in the central bank’s latest financial statements, has reignited debate over the financial soundness of Ghana’s apex bank and raised pressing questions about the long-term health of the national economy.
For many economists and financial observers, the development represents more than just an accounting deficit. It is increasingly being viewed as a signal of deeper structural stress within Ghana’s monetary and fiscal architecture following years of economic turbulence, aggressive monetary tightening, and the painful domestic debt restructuring programme.
At the centre of the controversy is one troubling question: Can a central bank drowning in losses effectively safeguard a fragile economy?
A Growing Financial Hole
The dramatic rise in negative equity means the liabilities of the central bank now significantly outweigh its assets, effectively placing the institution in a technically insolvent position on paper.
Financial experts argue that while central banks are not ordinary commercial institutions, the scale of the losses cannot simply be brushed aside.
The worsening financial position has largely been linked to the aftershocks of Ghana’s debt restructuring exercise, high operational costs tied to monetary policy interventions, exchange rate pressures, and the enormous burden of sterilisation costs aimed at taming inflation and stabilising the cedi.
Critics insist that the numbers expose the hidden costs of Ghana’s economic crisis.
“The central bank absorbed massive shocks during the financial turbulence, but the question now is whether those losses are sustainable without damaging confidence in the institution,” a financial analyst told this paper.
Threat to Confidence?
Perhaps the biggest danger lies not merely in the figures themselves but in what they communicate to investors, development partners, and financial markets.
A weakened balance sheet at the central bank may fuel concerns about policy credibility, especially at a time when Ghana continues efforts to restore macroeconomic stability under difficult economic conditions.
The credibility of a central bank remains essential to controlling inflation, maintaining currency stability, and reassuring investors that monetary policy decisions are based on economic fundamentals rather than political pressure.
With negative equity widening sharply within a year, concerns are mounting over whether the institution may eventually require significant government recapitalisation — an intervention that could place additional strain on already stretched public finances.
Not Yet Economic Doom
However, some economists caution against sensational interpretations.
Unlike commercial banks, central banks do not operate under conventional profitability rules and cannot collapse in the traditional sense because they possess monetary authority and sovereign backing.
Across the world, some central banks have operated with negative capital positions while still maintaining effective monetary control.
Yet experts stress that what matters most is not the accounting loss itself, but whether it begins to undermine confidence, inflation control, exchange-rate stability, or monetary independence.
The real test, they argue, is whether the central bank can continue to execute sound policies while rebuilding its balance sheet over time.
Time for Transparency and Accountability
The development nonetheless intensifies calls for greater transparency regarding the drivers of the ballooning losses and the roadmap toward recovery.
Economic watchers say Ghanaians deserve a full explanation of how the negative equity nearly doubled and what safeguards are being implemented to prevent further deterioration.
As Ghana seeks to consolidate fragile economic gains, confidence in its financial institutions remains paramount.
The latest figures may not signal immediate economic collapse, but they undeniably represent a warning bell that policymakers ignore at their own peril.
The question now confronting Ghana is simple but profound: Can the Bank of Ghana restore confidence before the numbers become too heavy for the economy to bear?
