The Member of Parliament for Tano North and Member of Parliament’s Finance Committee, Dr. Gideon Boako, has raised concerns over how the Bank of Ghana(BoG) accounts for its financial position, arguing that its reported solvency is being influenced by non-recurring income sources.
He said the central bank’s claim of being solvent, based on a reported net profit of about GH¢5 billion, does not fully reflect underlying financial realities when key components of its income are examined.
“The Central Bank says we are solvent because we made a net profit of about GHS5 billion or so,” he noted.
However, Dr. Boako pointed to what he described as inconsistencies in the bank’s financial structure, citing figures in the institution’s own insolvency table.
He said the Bank of Ghana reported net operating income of about GH¢22 billion against a net operating loss of GH¢15 billion.
According to him, a significant portion of the income used in arriving at the positive position came from a one-off gold sale, which he argued should not be treated as recurring revenue.
“Inclusive of the GH¢22 billion or the net operating income is the one-off gold sale proceeds and that is what the conversation should centre on,” he said, adding that such income is not sustainable for assessing long-term financial health.
He stressed that one-off transactions, including gold sales, should be treated cautiously in financial analysis because they do not represent regular revenue streams.
“The bank in September, October realised that chances are that if we don’t do something smart we are going to run into insolvency, and so they said we have a treasure in gold, let’s sell the gold and use it to enhance our income position,” he stated.
Dr. Boako further referenced international financial reporting practices, arguing that institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) typically exclude one-off revenue items when assessing fiscal performance.
“The IMF does not allow countries to include one-off generation points into the revenues of the countries. So those are excluded,” he said.
He questioned the appropriateness of the Bank of Ghana’s decision to include proceeds from gold sales in its income position, suggesting that it may distort the true state of the central bank’s finances.
“It therefore beats imagination that the central bank smartly felt that because at the end of the year we are going to run into insolvency, let’s sell half of our gold reserves and add it to our income,” he added.
His comments come amid ongoing public debate over the Bank of Ghana’s 2025 financial results, which show significant losses and a sharp rise in negative equity, despite improvements in operating income supported in part by gold-related transactions and other exceptional gains.
