The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is proposing new liquidity requirements that would compel banks to hold sufficient liquid assets to withstand financial stress for 30 days.
The proposed Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) Directive is intended to strengthen banks’ ability to meet short-term financial obligations during periods of funding pressure and sudden cash outflows.
The central bank has opened the draft directive to public consultation, inviting banks, industry stakeholders and members of the public to submit comments before the rules are finalised.
Submissions must be sent to bsdletters@bog.gov.gh by November 30, 2026, in line with the BoG’s Procedures for Issuance of Directives, 2020.
Under the proposed framework, banks would be required to maintain adequate high-quality liquid assets to cover their liquidity needs during a 30-calendar-day period of significant financial stress.
The requirement would establish a prudential benchmark for assessing banks’ liquidity buffers and their ability to withstand unexpected cash outflows.
The BoG says it will consider all material comments received during the consultation and provide written explanations of how they were addressed, including whether they were incorporated into the final directive.
The consultation gives banks and other stakeholders an opportunity to raise concerns about implementation and propose changes before the directive is finalised.
Broader banking sector reforms
The proposed liquidity requirement forms part of wider regulatory efforts to strengthen risk management in the banking sector.
The BoG has also outlined a Credit Risk Management Directive to complement the Non-Performing Loan Notice issued last year.
The proposed credit-risk framework is expected to cover the entire lending process, including credit origination, administration, monitoring, measurement and recovery.
While the credit-risk measures focus on how banks assess and manage lending, the LCR requirement is designed to ensure they have sufficient liquid assets to meet short-term obligations when financial conditions deteriorate.
Together, the two measures target different aspects of banking-sector resilience: the management of lending risks and the ability to meet immediate financial commitments.
The proposed LCR rules could also affect banks’ treasury operations, liquidity planning and the composition of assets held to meet regulatory requirements.
However, the extent of the impact will depend on the final directive and the specific requirements adopted by the central bank.
