Financial Sector Assets up 34.6% in 2024 to GHS 525.59 Billion
Total assets in Ghana’s financial sector rose by 34.6% year-on-year to GHS 525.59 billion at end-December 2024, up from GHS 390.17 billion recorded in 2023, according to the latest Financial Stability Review.
Despite the growth, the sector’s asset-to-GDP ratio declined marginally to 45.2% in December 2024, compared to 46.4% in the previous year.
The banking sector maintained its dominant position, accounting for 76.4% of total financial sector assets, marginally higher than the 76.3% share recorded in 2023.
The pensions sector’s contribution improved to 16.4% from 15.8% in 2023, while the securities and insurance sectors remained relatively stable. The securities sector’s share stood at 3.8%, slightly down from 4.0%, while insurance declined to 3.4% from 3.9% in 2023.
Meanwhile, banks’ exposure to the financial system was skewed heavily towards the securities industry. As of December 2024, total exposure of banks to other financial institutions amounted to GHS 286 million, up from GHS 201.91 million in the previous year.
Breakdown of the exposures showed that banks had GHS 272.73 million in placements and loans to securities firms, GHS 10.38 million to insurance companies, and GHS 2.90 million to pension institutions.
The report cautioned that this distribution of exposure suggests that financial distress in the securities sector poses the highest systemic risk to the banking industry.
