Ghana banks’ profits slip to GH¢7.1bn as interest income falls
Banks remained profitable in the first half of 2026, but weaker interest income and a sharp rise in credit-related provisions reduced earnings and pushed key profitability indicators lower.
Ghana’s banking industry recorded GH¢7.1 billion in profit after tax during the first half of 2026, as declining interest income and rising impairment costs placed earnings under pressure.
Profit after tax fell by 1.3% from GH¢7.2 billion in the same period of 2025, according to the Bank of Ghana’s July 2026 Monetary Policy Report.
The decline marked a sharp reversal from the 32.6% growth recorded in June 2025, although the industry remained profitable.
Profit before tax also contracted by 1.5%, compared with an expansion of 32.2% a year earlier.
The Bank of Ghana attributed much of the slowdown to the prevailing low interest-rate environment, which affected one of the industry’s principal sources of income.
Net interest income fell by 3.1% at the end of June 2026, reversing the 20.2% growth recorded during the corresponding period in 2025.
Banks earn net interest income from the difference between the interest received on loans and other interest-bearing assets and the interest paid to depositors and other lenders.
The pressure was reflected in the industry’s interest spread, which narrowed from 6.0% to 4.4%. Gross yields also declined from 8.9% to 6.1%.
Fees and commissions provided some support to banks’ earnings, increasing by 18.2%. This was slightly higher than the 17.8% growth recorded a year earlier.
However, that increase came as banks faced a significant rise in credit-related costs.
Provisions for depreciation, bad debts and impairment losses on financial assets surged by 38.2%. In June 2025, those provisions had contracted by 14.8%.
The increase suggests that banks set aside substantially more money to cover possible losses on loans and other financial assets, further limiting profit growth.
Key measures of profitability also weakened during the period.
Return on Equity, which measures profit relative to shareholders’ funds, dropped from 32.2% to 22.9%. Return on Assets declined from 5.6% to 4.4%.
Investment income remained the industry’s largest source of earnings, but its contribution to total income fell from 46.4% to 42.8%.
Income from loans and advances also accounted for a smaller share of total earnings, declining from 30.1% to 28.4%.
The figures show that Ghana’s banks remained profitable during the first six months of 2026 but faced tighter margins across their core operations.