Dr Ernest Addison, BoG Governor
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Ernest Addison, has said that despite the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP)-related losses experienced by banks in 2022, there has been relative stability in the banking sector.
He noted that per its prudential data in the year to October 2023, total assets have increased by 16.7 percent year-on-year to GHC257.89 billion funded by deposits, which recorded 26.6 percent growth to GHC199.94 billion from GHC172.09 billion.
Total borrowings by banks, however, contracted by 21.0 percent to GHC14.94 billion from GHC30.41 billion a year earlier.
“Profitability of banks has remained relatively strong, on the back of higher interest income on loans and investments as well as other income sources. These developments culminated in an industry profit-after-tax of GHC7.10 billion, representing a 60.4 percent annual growth, compared with 17.2 percent growth in 2022,” he said.
“Capital Adequacy Ratio, adjusted for the regulatory reliefs, was 13.4 percent in October 2023, higher than the revised prudential minimum of 10 percent. However, the industry’s NPL ratio increased to 18.3 percent in October 2023, from 14.0 percent in October 2022, attributable to elevated credit risk associated with the lagged effect of the macroeconomic crisis in 2022,” he added.
Dr. Addison made these known when he delivered the keynote address at the 2023 Governor’s Day event organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Accra.
