Six Banks in Ghana Face Capital Shortfalls, May Require External Support – Fitch Ratings
Fitch Ratings has cautioned that six banks operating in Ghana are unlikely to meet regulatory capital requirements through internal capital generation alone.
The ratings agency said the affected lenders will need to pursue fresh capital injections, consider mergers or acquisitions with stronger peers, or rely on extended regulatory forbearance to build sufficient retained earnings.
It noted that two state-owned banks remain undercapitalised despite receiving prior government support. “We expect them [state-owned banks] to receive further capital support to achieve capital compliance, although this may not materialise before end-2025,” Fitch stated.
The Bank of Ghana first disclosed the sector’s capital adequacy ratio (CAR), excluding regulatory forbearance, at 8.7% in February 2024. By the end of the first half of 2025, the ratio had strengthened to 18.2%, reflecting improved resilience across the industry.
According to Fitch, this indicates that most banks will be comfortably compliant once the final 25% of losses on cedi-denominated government bonds is fully phased into regulatory capital by end-2025.
