Omanghana
Foreign-controlled banks maintained their dominance of Ghana’s secured lending market in the second quarter of 2026, accounting for more than 70 per cent of the credit registered by commercial banks.
According to the Bank of Ghana’s Collateral Registry report, foreign-owned banks registered GH¢14.1 billion in secured credit between April and June 2026. The amount represented 71.1 per cent of the GH¢19.9 billion recorded by the banking sector during the quarter.
The figure was 19.3 per cent higher than the GH¢11.8 billion registered by foreign-controlled banks during the same period in 2025. It also marked a 22.2 per cent increase from the GH¢11.6 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2026.
Ghanaian-owned banks accounted for the remaining 28.9 per cent of secured credit registered by banks, with their total rising to GH¢5.7 billion.
Although indigenous banks held a considerably smaller market share, they recorded the fastest growth. Their secured credit increased by 112.4 per cent from GH¢2.7 billion in the second quarter of 2025.
On a quarterly basis, secured lending by Ghanaian-owned banks rose by 19.7 per cent from GH¢4.8 billion in the first quarter to GH¢5.7 billion in the second quarter.
Across the wider financial sector, the value of secured credit advanced and registered reached GH¢31.5 billion in the second quarter. This represented a 73.4 per cent increase from GH¢18.2 billion during the corresponding period in 2025 and a 57.5 per cent rise from the first quarter of 2026.
Commercial banks remained the largest source of secured financing, accounting for GH¢19.9 billion, or 63.1 per cent of the total value recorded across all lending institutions. Other participants included savings and loans companies, rural and community banks, microfinance institutions and microcredit firms.
The sharp increase in credit value occurred despite a decline in the number of security-interest registrations. Registrations fell by 32.2 per cent from 135,721 in the second quarter of 2025 to 92,033 in the same period of 2026.
The figures indicate that a smaller number of transactions carried significantly higher values, suggesting that large commercial and corporate facilities were major contributors to the growth in secured lending.
Large enterprises received GH¢13.8 billion, representing 43.9 per cent of the total secured credit registered during the quarter. Credit to small and medium-sized enterprises rose by 28.9 per cent from GH¢2.9 billion to GH¢3.8 billion.
The construction industry received the largest sectoral allocation at GH¢9.9 billion, equivalent to 31.4 per cent of the overall amount. Secured credit to the commerce and finance sector rose by 25.9 per cent from GH¢6.4 billion to GH¢8.1 billion, while lending to the services sector increased by 154.8 per cent.
The Collateral Registry also recorded increased use of its search platform. Searches rose by 13.9 per cent year on year to 19,518, indicating stronger reliance on the system for credit checks and due diligence.
The latest figures show that foreign-controlled banks continue to finance the largest share of Ghana’s collateral-backed borrowing. However, the rapid growth recorded by indigenous banks suggests that locally owned institutions are steadily increasing their participation in the secured credit market.
Source: Omanghana
