- Gov’t Accepts GH¢8.65bn in Oversubscribed T-Bill Auction
The Government of Ghana’s latest Treasury bill auction was oversubscribed by 79.08%, attracting total bids of GH¢10.51 billion against a target of GH¢5.87 billion, as strong demand allowed the government to mop up substantially more than initially planned.
According to the Bank of Ghana’s results for Tender 2018 held on July 31, 2026, investors submitted GH¢2.27 billion for the 91-day bill, GH¢757.93 million for the 182-day instrument and GH¢7.47 billion for the 364-day bill.
The government accepted a combined GH¢8.65 billion, representing about 82.35% of the total bids submitted.
That means the government mopped up GH¢2.79 billion more than its GH¢5.87 billion target, equivalent to 47.48% above target.
The bulk of the borrowing was concentrated in the one-year instrument.
Of the GH¢7.47 billion tendered for the 364-day bill, government accepted GH¢7.18 billion, translating into an acceptance rate of about 96.03%.
By comparison, only GH¢972.94 million of the GH¢2.27 billion submitted for the 91-day bill was accepted, while GH¢501.38 million was accepted from the GH¢757.93 million tendered for the 182-day security.
The distribution indicates that government’s mop-up strategy was heavily tilted towards locking in funding at the longer end of the Treasury bill curve rather than absorbing all available short-term liquidity.
Yields remained relatively contained.
The weighted average interest rate on the 91-day bill settled at 5.76%, while the 182-day bill cleared at 7.64%. The 364-day bill attracted a weighted average interest rate of 12.98%.
The latest auction therefore allowed government to raise significantly more than its stated financing requirement without an apparent sharp upward repricing of short-term borrowing costs.
Demand was strongest for the 364-day bill, which alone accounted for about 71.15% of all bids submitted and approximately 82.96% of the total amount accepted.
That concentration suggests investors were willing to extend duration despite the significantly higher yield required on the one-year security.
The Bank of Ghana had targeted GH¢5.87 billion across the 91-day, 182-day and 364-day instruments.
The GH¢10.51 billion tendered therefore exceeded the target by GH¢4.64 billion.
The government’s decision to accept GH¢8.65 billion rather than restrict borrowing to the original target highlights the continuing use of Treasury bill auctions as a liquidity mop-up and domestic financing tool.
The result follows another heavily subscribed auction the previous week.
Tender 2017, held on July 24, attracted GH¢12.37 billion in bids, of which GH¢11.55 billion was sold.
That suggests investor appetite for government short-term securities remains strong, supported by liquidity in the financial system and yields that continue to provide positive nominal returns.
The next auction will test whether that demand remains equally strong.
The Bank of Ghana has set a target of GH¢6.22 billion for Tender 2019 across the same three Treasury bill maturities.
For the government, continued oversubscription provides greater flexibility in managing refinancing requirements and cash needs.
But the extent of each mop-up will remain important. Consistently accepting significantly more than announced targets can increase domestic financing even when investor demand is strong.
At the July 31 auction, however, the immediate signal was clear: demand substantially exceeded supply, and government took advantage of that liquidity to mop up nearly GH¢2.79 billion above target, with the 364-day bill accounting for the overwhelming majority of the additional borrowing.
