Financial analyst, Patrick Abankwa Baah, has raised concerns that the Bank of Ghana’s latest directive on foreign exchange withdrawals may inadvertently drive large companies to the black market.
The central bank on August 20, 2025 instructed commercial banks to immediately halt the issuance of foreign currency cash to large corporates unless such transactions are backed by equivalent deposits.
According to the BoG, all withdrawals must be fully supported by foreign cash deposits lodged by the same institution at the central bank.
The move follows what the Bank describes as a growing practice where companies withdraw foreign currency without prior deposits, a trend it says exerts undue pressure on the forex market and threatens exchange rate stability.
While acknowledging the intention behind the directive, Mr. Abankwa Baah cautioned that it could create unintended consequences.
“The Bank of Ghana has a role in managing the flow of currency in the country and ensuring that inflation remains low. Bringing out this directive means that large corporates cannot withdraw foreign currency they did not deposit,” he told 3Business.
He explained that, although the measure could help regulate how much money circulates in the system, it also has a downside.
“If these large corporate institutions are not given access to funds from the banking sector, they will want to survive. One way they may do this is by turning to places outside the banking industry, which could allow the black market to thrive,” he warned.
The analyst argued that directives of this nature risk sparking speculation, which could further weaken the local currency.
“New directives only spark speculation in the system. And once that happens, businesses will find ways and means to survive and that can lead to more speculation, which does not help the cedi,” he added.
Instead of relying heavily on directives, Mr. Abankwa Baah urged the central bank to adopt more collaborative approaches with the commercial banks.
“We don’t need too many directives. The Bank of Ghana should use backdoor discussions with banks so they can in turn engage their customers. That will reduce panic and speculation, which historically has led to depreciation of the cedi,” he advised.
By Esinu Adza|3Business
