BoG's $260 million building: It was Ato Forson who first proposed 'sell-and-leaseback' in March 2025 — Amin Adam

A former Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Karaga in the Northern Region, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, has questioned the credibility of the Bank of Ghana's denial of a media report that suggested a proposal and a discussion on whether or not to sell the newly built headquarters of the bank located at Ridge in Accra.

According to Dr Amin Adam, this was not the first time this issue has come up, and that, it was the current Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, who first made a similar suggestion in March 2025 while explaining the 2025 Budget in a television interview with Joy News [Watch attached video below with Joy News]

In a statement signed by Dr Adam, who is also the Co-Chair of the NPP's Finance and Economic Policy Committee, he called on the government to formally and permanently abandon any plan to sell the BoG headquarters, arguing that comments previously made by Dr Ato Forson make the central bank's denial of such a proposal difficult to accept.

To him, he and the opposition New Patriotic Party acknowledge the Bank of Ghana's statement of June 2, 2026, which described the media report by Myjoyonline as "false and misleading."

Nevertheless, the NPP maintains that the idea of selling the building did not originate from the media.

He said Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, during an appearance on JoyNews' PM Express programme on March 11, 2025, shortly after presenting the 2025 Budget, rejected the use of taxpayer funds to recapitalise the Bank of Ghana and suggested that the institution should "look within" for solutions.

According to the NPP, Dr Forson specifically referred to the bank's new headquarters and stated that the central bank had "a choice to sell and lease back". He said those remarks were made publicly and formed the basis of concerns about a possible sale-and-leaseback arrangement.

The statement said the detailed nature of the media report, which referred to a sale-and-leaseback structure, a valuation of about US$260 million and differing views within the Bank's board, suggested that the information came from sources close to the matter.

It added that the speed of the Bank's denial appeared to reflect public reaction to the report rather than a genuine change in position.

The NPP argued that selling and leasing back the headquarters would not amount to recapitalisation. Instead, it said, the arrangement would amount to borrowing against a national asset while creating a long-term rental obligation.

The party contended that such a transaction would exchange a permanent asset owned by the people of Ghana for a one-time payment, while leaving unresolved the losses at the centre of the Bank's financial difficulties.

The statement further argued that the financial benefits of any such arrangement would largely favour the buyer.

It is estimated that at a prime rental rate in Accra of about US$35 per square metre per month, the 150,000-square-metre complex could generate gross rental income of about US$63 million annually.

Based on a sale price of about US$260 million, the NPP said the transaction could yield a return of about 24 per cent for a buyer and allow the investment to be recovered in less than 4.1 years.

The party also argued that any buyer would likely require a lease agreement of at least 25 years, with the Bank guaranteeing full occupancy and carrying most of the associated risks. It said annual rent increases linked to inflation and lease reviews would further increase the cost to the central bank.

According to the NPP, after transaction-related costs, the Bank would receive only about US$230 million from a sale price it described as already undervalued.

The statement also questioned the accounting basis for such an arrangement. It said that under International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 16 and Financial Reporting Standard (FRS) 102, the leaseback would place a substantial liability on the Bank's balance sheet while removing an asset that could appreciate over time.

The NPP further raised concerns about a possible conflict of interest, noting that the Bank of Ghana regulates many of the institutions that could potentially purchase or finance the building.

The party said this could result in a situation where a financial institution supervised by the central bank becomes its landlord.

The NPP called on the government to publish a detailed recapitalisation plan for the Bank of Ghana, including the amounts involved, the financial instruments to be used and the sources of funding.

It also urged the government to stop what it described as practices that were worsening the Bank's financial position, citing losses it claimed were being transferred to the central bank through entities such as GoldBod.

The statement described Bank Square as a national asset belonging to the people of Ghana and argued that it should not be sold to address financial challenges which, in the party's view, could have been avoided through prudent policy decisions.

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