Bank of Ghana moves to regulate stablecoins

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is developing a dedicated Stablecoin Directive to set clear requirements for stablecoin activities in the country, as the central bank moves to balance digital innovation with the protection of monetary sovereignty and financial stability.

Speaking at the Africa Virtual Assets Summit 2026 in Accra, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama, said the directive would provide clarity for any permitted activities while addressing the risks associated with the growing adoption of digital assets.

He emphasised that while stablecoins may offer benefits for payments and settlement, their growing adoption, particularly those denominated in foreign currencies, could have implications for monetary sovereignty, currency substitution, capital flows and the effectiveness of monetary policy.

“Innovation in digital finance must support, rather than undermine monetary and financial stability and confidence in the Ghana cedi,” Dr Asiama stated.

He noted that this does not call for heavy-handed regulation, as not all virtual asset activities present the same risks, and the central bank’s approach must reflect their nature, scale and complexity. Instead, he stressed the need for trust built on consumer and investor protection, the safeguarding of customer assets, financial integrity, and sound connections with the traditional financial system.

The Governor highlighted that the passage of the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025 (Act 1154) marks a significant milestone, establishing a dedicated legal framework with coordinated regulation by the Bank of Ghana and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

He said legislation is only the beginning, and the real test will be translating the law into a credible and enforceable framework that gives responsible firms and investors the certainty they need to build and invest with confidence.

As part of these efforts, the Bank of Ghana is working closely with the SEC and the Financial Intelligence Centre to develop the necessary regulatory instruments and supervisory arrangements, with the inauguration of the Virtual Assets Coordinating Committee providing an important platform for cooperation among relevant public institutions.

Dr Asiama noted that Ghana has already shown it can adopt financial technology at scale, with mobile money platforms processing over one billion transactions worth approximately GH¢519 billion in August 2026 alone.

He said virtual assets and tokenisation offer opportunities to address longstanding market imperfections, including limited access to capital, high transaction costs, fragmented financial infrastructure, and barriers to cross-border payments and investment.

He added that the central bank’s ambition is a financial system that is more inclusive, efficient and resilient, where a trader in Kumasi, a cocoa farmer and a young developer in Accra can all benefit from faster, cheaper and safer financial services.