- Ghana Fixed-Income Trading Value Jumps 102.65% As August Volume Hits GH¢48.99bn
Trading activity on the Ghana Fixed Income Market accelerated sharply in August 2026, with the value of securities traded more than doubling from a year earlier as investors concentrated heavily in government instruments and activity in corporate securities remained comparatively thin.
The market recorded GH¢48.99 billion in trading volume during August, compared with GH¢23.92 billion in the corresponding period of 2025, representing growth of 104.77%. The value of transactions climbed 102.65% to GH¢43.20 billion from GH¢21.32 billion, while the number of trades increased 153.34% to 36,124.
The expansion extends a much stronger year for Ghana’s secondary fixed-income market. Between January and August, trading volume reached GH¢304.76 billion, up 100.41% from GH¢152.07 billion over the comparable 2025 period, while traded value increased 116.17% to GH¢276.80 billion.
The cumulative volume recorded in the first eight months of 2026 has already surpassed every full-year total reported by GFIM since its inception, including the GH¢245.85 billion recorded for all of 2025 and GH¢230.68 billion in 2022. The market’s August report shows cumulative 2026 volume at GH¢304.76 billion, compared with GH¢208.81 billion in 2021, GH¢98.44 billion in 2023 and GH¢174.00 billion in 2024.
Government securities were overwhelmingly responsible for the increase. Government notes and bonds accounted for 52.77% of total volume in the period covered by the report, while Treasury bills contributed another 45.98%, leaving corporate instruments with just 1.25% of market activity.
That composition highlights both the depth and the concentration of Ghana’s fixed-income market. Strong secondary-market activity improves liquidity and price discovery for government debt, but the limited share of corporate securities illustrates how far the market still has to go before private issuers become a meaningful alternative source of long-term financing.
The divergence was especially visible in August. Government securities accounted for GH¢48.83 billion of the GH¢48.99 billion in volume reported in the comparative August trade summary, while corporate securities generated only GH¢155.14 million. Government securities produced GH¢43.04 billion in traded value against GH¢161.39 million from corporates.
Corporate activity was not only small relative to sovereign trading but also weaker than a year earlier. Corporate securities volume fell from GH¢885.69 million in August 2025 to GH¢155.14 million in August 2026, while traded value dropped from GH¢837.15 million to GH¢161.39 million.
The contrast matters for capital-market development because a fixed-income market dominated almost entirely by government securities can deepen sovereign financing without necessarily expanding credit opportunities for private businesses. Ghana’s longer-term challenge is therefore to convert the liquidity and institutional participation visible in GFIM into a broader market capable of supporting corporate investment.
Treasury bills remained a major driver of trading, with the 364-day instrument dominating the short end. In August alone, the 364-day bill recorded GH¢16.70 billion in volume and GH¢15.43 billion in traded value, compared with GH¢1.85 billion in volume for the 91-day bill and GH¢954.95 million for the 182-day security.
Longer-dated government bonds were also active, particularly the eight-year and nine-year instruments. The eight-year bond generated GH¢7.17 billion in volume and GH¢6.05 billion in traded value, while the nine-year bond recorded GH¢5.75 billion in volume and GH¢4.71 billion in value.
The government securities market is also being reshaped by lower yields compared with a year earlier across much of the curve. The 91-day Treasury bill yield stood at 4.92% in August 2026, down from 10.94% in 2025, while the 182-day bill fell to 6.88% from 12.88% and the 364-day bill to 10.69% from 13.28%.
The decline extended into several bond maturities, with the four-year yield at 10.85% compared with 15.25% a year earlier and the five-year yield at 12.73% against 15.39%. Some longer maturities were closer to 2025 levels, while the 10-year yield was slightly higher at 14.70% compared with 14.15%.
Lower yields can reduce government’s marginal domestic borrowing costs, but the implications for investors are more complex. Falling yields generally support the prices of existing fixed-rate securities, while new investors receive lower nominal returns, increasing the importance of inflation expectations and portfolio positioning.
The corporate market, meanwhile, remains heavily concentrated. Outstanding corporate securities stood at GH¢8.45 billion at the end of August, compared with GH¢8.40 billion a year earlier, with Ghana Cocoa Board accounting for GH¢7.33 billion, or approximately 86.79% of the total.
Petrosol Platinum Energy added two new corporate bond tranches in August, each worth GH¢50.00 million, carrying coupons of 16.25% and 17.00% and maturing in 2030 and 2031 respectively. Together with two Izwe Savings and Loans issuances earlier in the year, total corporate issuance in 2026 stood at GH¢150.00 million.
The broader message from the August report is therefore one of rapid market expansion accompanied by persistent concentration.
GFIM is processing substantially more trading activity than a year ago, liquidity in government securities has deepened and yields across much of the curve have fallen. But with sovereign instruments accounting for virtually all turnover and corporate securities representing only a fraction of activity, the next stage of development will require more private issuers, deeper secondary-market liquidity and a broader investor base.
The market has already traded GH¢304.76 billion in securities in the first eight months of 2026. The more important test is whether that growing liquidity can eventually support not only government financing, but also the long-term capital needs of Ghanaian businesses.
