A Banking Consultant, Nana Otuo Acheampong, says all blame cannot be laid squarely on the Bank of Ghana (BoG) for the GH₵60 billion loss it recorded in 2022.
According to him, the crux of the matter is understanding the root causes of the loss, rather than focusing solely on the magnitude of the figure.
The financial expert, then highlighted that a considerable portion of the GH₵60 billion loss, a staggering 80 percent, can be attributed to the Domestic Debt Exchange Program (DDEP).
In his view, the program was introduced as a response to two major events – Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war – that adversely affected the economic situation of the country.
He said this when contributing to the topic, “Bank of Ghana: Unpacking the Historic Loss” on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday.
“We know that this GH₵60 billion loss with 80 percent coming from DDEP is only a technical loss. It is the loss on the books, it is not a real loss. So let’s try and put this in perspective for the understanding of the average Ghanaian,” he told host Evans Mensah.
Read more: BoG records ¢60.8bn loss in 2022
Mr Acheampong urged observers to refrain from making simplistic claims about predicting the BoG’s losses, asserting that the DDEP’s impact cannot be ignored.
The analyst underlined that without the DDEP, the GH₵60 billion loss might not have materialised in the first place.
Already, the Bank of Ghana has allayed the fears of the public, noting that the loss would not “negatively impact” its operations.
Economist Prof Godfred Bokpin, however, maintained that as a central bank it ought to be proactive and ensure that such a grave impact was averted.
