In a striking revelation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Bank of Ghana (BoG) sold a staggering $1.4 billion in foreign exchange during the first quarter of 2025 alone—surpassing its entire annual intervention of $1 billion in 2023.

This aggressive intervention has drawn sharp caution from the IMF, which is calling on the Central Bank to scale down its market dominance and adopt a more structured and transparent approach to managing the cedi.

According to the IMF’s latest review of Ghana’s programme, the BoG’s footprint in the foreign exchange (FX) market has grown significantly. The $1.4 billion injected into the market in just three months signals a dramatic acceleration in market activity, especially when compared to the $3 billion it sold in the entirety of 2024—$2 billion of which was concentrated in the politically charged fourth quarter.

“The scale of intervention by the Bank of Ghana in 2025 is unprecedented,” the report noted. “This suggests a continuation of the Bank’s active management strategy, but also underscores the risks of overreliance on such measures.”

IMF Sounds the Alarm

While the cedi has shown remarkable strength—appreciating from 14.7 to the U.S. dollar at the beginning of 2025 to 10.37 by mid-year—the IMF has raised concerns about the sustainability of this approach. The Fund has urged the BoG to reduce its footprint in the FX market and allow for greater exchange rate flexibility.

More critically, the IMF is recommending the establishment of a formal internal intervention framework, which would bring predictability and transparency to forex operations.

“The current approach may deliver short-term stability, but without a clear rules-based framework, it exposes the currency to potential volatility if inflows slow or external shocks arise.”
IMF

What’s Driving the Interventions?

BoG officials have explained that the heavy interventions stem largely from persistent U.S. dollar obligations, particularly in the energy sector. These include monthly payments to independent power producers, fuel importers, and suppliers like the West African Gas Pipeline Company.

Fuel imports alone average $400 million per month, creating a quarterly demand of roughly $1.2 billion—almost the exact amount the BoG spent in Q1 2025. In other words, the Bank is effectively underwriting Ghana’s energy security with its forex buffer.

Fortunately for the BoG, Ghana’s foreign reserves have received a major boost, rising to $10.6 billion. This translates to over 4.7 months of import cover, thanks to high gold prices, increased remittances, better cocoa earnings, and expanded domestic gold purchases under the Bank’s gold-buying programme.

This cushion has emboldened the Central Bank to continue its interventions, believing that the inflow pipeline remains strong enough to support the cedi without endangering macroeconomic stability.

However, analysts caution against complacency.

Risks on the Horizon

Should global gold or cocoa prices dip, Ghana could face renewed currency pressure. Already, experts are concerned that the BoG’s heavy-handed approach may mask underlying vulnerabilities in the exchange rate mechanism.

At the current pace, the Central Bank could spend as much as $5.6 billion by the end of 2025—nearly doubling its 2024 total. If inflows falter, or if geopolitical tensions and inflation reemerge globally, Ghana could be forced to either hike interest rates or allow the cedi to depreciate sharply.

The IMF’s call for a rules-based approach is not merely bureaucratic—it’s about building long-term resilience. Adopting an internal forex intervention framework will enhance predictability for businesses, investors, and international partners alike.

“The cedi’s current strength is encouraging,” the IMF concluded, “but without deliberate policy planning, the gains may prove fragile.”

Meanwhile, BoG may continue intervening and risk depleting reserves—or institutionalize discipline and let the market breathe. Either way, Ghana’s monetary credibility is once again under global scrutiny.