The Chief Executive Officer of GoldBod, Sammy Gyamfi, has announced that, going forward, the agency will only transact business at interbank forex rates.
GoldBod came under intense public criticism following revelations that it had been trading gold at the black market rate of over GH¢12 per US dollar, instead of the approved Bank of Ghana rate of GH¢10.30.
Responding to a critical comment on X (formerly Twitter) by IMANI Africa Vice President, Bright Simons, Mr Gyamfi admitted that GoldBod had indeed traded at black market rates, citing competition from gold smugglers as the reason.
“Gold has always been bought in the local Ghanaian market based on the informal retail forex rate, popularly called the ‘black market’ rate, since time immemorial,” Sammy Gyamfi wrote, in defence of GoldBod’s decision.
“When I assumed office as Acting Managing Director of the PMMC on 22 January 2025, gold was being bought by all market players, including public and private entities, at a black market rate of about GH¢16. What GoldBod has sought to do is to change this black market buying phenomenon, which is the primary source of forex trading losses by the Bank of Ghana, MIIF, and other responsible traders, through our market regulatory powers.”
“By April 2025, GoldBod had succeeded in bringing the local buying rate down to interbank levels. We managed to sustain local prices at that level for about two months.”
“However, due to the lack of permanent market regulatory systems, GoldBod was, in the last two weeks of June 2025, compelled to raise its buying rate back to black market levels. This was to combat extreme competition from smugglers and hoarders who were taking undue advantage of the wide disparity between the interbank rate (GH¢10.30) and the black market rate (over GH¢12).”
Having explained why GoldBod reverted to black market rates in the past two weeks, Mr Gyamfi gave the assurance that the agency will now trade strictly at the approved Bank of Ghana interbank rate, despite the difficulties involved.
“This is the real challenge we face in our bid to keep the local buying rate at interbank levels and prevent trading losses.”
He noted that smugglers and hoarders are expectedly fighting back by offering higher prices for gold at black market rates in the local market.
“We hope to sustain the local buying rate at interbank levels and make it the norm,” he assured, adding that the GoldBod taskforce will intensify the enforcement of regulatory functions over the local gold market and help reduce price disruptions caused by smugglers and hoarders.
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