$1.7 Billion Loss: Bank of Ghana Blamed for Flaws in Domestic Gold Purchase Program

The Bank of Ghana (BOG) has reported a loss of $1.7 billion in its balance sheet for 2025, attributed to exchange rate differential and cedi liquidation due to the BOG's mechanics.

The Domestic Gold Purchase Program (DGPP), which was introduced in 2021 as a foreign exchange and economic stabilization tool, has been criticized for its design, which led to huge losses in the gold trading business.

According to the source, the DGPP's old framework involved large-scale mining companies under the Ghana Chamber of Mines selling 20% of their refined gold production at a 0.6% discount of the spot price to the BOG, while the remaining 80% was exported to LBMA-accredited refineries outside Ghana.

However, this led to huge losses in the gold trading business due to the payment of premium prices to reduce smuggling and the need to sell the gold at a discount percentage to off-takers outside Ghana.

The BOG's Domestic Gold Purchase Program (DGPP) was designed to boost the national reserves, which are made up of two parts: National Gold Reserves and National Foreign Currency (US Dollars) Reserves.

Dr. Bawumia introduced the 'Gold for Oil' leg of the DGPP in 2022, which involved physical gold handling with Precious Minerals Market Company acting as an agent of the BOG to weigh and value the gold before exporting it for barter trade or sale for dollars.

The GoldBod was established in 2025 with the exclusive right role for gold trading in Ghana among others, replacing Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC) in the gold trading business of the G4O leg of the DGPP in the Small Scale Mining Sector.