Ghana’s banking assets hit GH¢500.2bn as all 23 banks meet capital requirements

After the economic crisis pushed 13 banks below regulatory capital limits, Ghana’s banking sector is back on solid ground, with the Bank of Ghana confirming that all 23 banks now comply.

Governor Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama announced the milestone at the 43rd Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Association of Banks in Accra on Thursday, 8 October 2026, where the sixth edition of the GH Bankers’ Voice Magazine was launched.

The breaches, he recalled, were revealed by the 2022 audited financial statements and were linked to the crisis and the impairment of financial assets, following the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme.

“This is a significant achievement,” Dr Asiama said, crediting banks, shareholders, investors, the Association, the government, and the central bank.

The sector’s numbers have improved since 2025, the Governor said, helped by better macroeconomic conditions and continued regulatory reforms. By the end of August 2026, total banking assets had grown 20.47 per cent year-on-year to GH¢500.20 billion, from GH¢415.20 billion.

Dr Asiama stressed that meeting the minimum was only a start. Banks must hold capital matching their risk profiles and build buffers for future shocks, he said, because the risks they face are becoming more complex.

The Bank reviewed the sustainability of banks’ business models in 2025, and the vulnerabilities it found have been shared with the institutions. A second review is planned for next year.

The Governor said the Bank is preparing two directives. One, on credit risk management, will complement its notice on non-performing loans (NPLs) and push banks to strengthen underwriting, loan monitoring, restructuring, and recovery. The other, on the Liquidity Coverage Ratio, will set a prudential liquidity requirement.

He said the liquidity ratio should be part of a wider risk culture, backed by contingency funding and diversified funding sources.

The Bank has tightened its stress-testing framework. It is discussing the results, based on severe but plausible scenarios, with banks, which are expected to use them in capital and liquidity planning.

On technology, Dr Asiama said cybersecurity, digital fraud, data protection, and operational resilience are drawing supervisory attention. The Bank will review how banks are applying its revised Cyber and Information Security Directive, and he urged boards to treat cyber risk as a core business risk.