How BoG Supplied $1.6bn to BOST Suppliers Outside Auctions Under Shady G4O Deal -Simons Alleges

The issues of the Gold-for-Oil (G4O) programme seem not to be dying anytime soon, as fresh allegations have revealed that the Bank of Ghana (BoG), under the programme, supplied about $1.6 billion to questionable entities under shady deals.

The G4O programme, which was hailed by the previous government as an innovative way to stabilise fuel prices and the cedi, has now come under serious scrutiny after an international forensic audit revealed alleged corrupt deals under the initiative.

Honorary Vice President of IMANI of Africa, Bright Simons, suggests that what could have been a straightforward process of supporting Ghana’s fuel importers with dollars was instead turned into an opaque, multi-billion-dollar scheme shrouded in secrecy.

In his latest commentary on the saga, he explained that Ghana’s fuel market, though “almost liberalised,” operates under the close eye of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA).

Licensed Bulk Distribution Companies (BDCs) bring in petroleum products, while the Bank of Ghana (BoG) routinely supports them with foreign exchange auctions to ease pressure on the commercial banking system.

However, according to Simons, when the G4O programme was launched, the government opted for a different route. Instead of simply increasing dollar supply to BDCs through transparent auctions, the BoG decided to channel special support to the state-owned Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST).

BOST, he notes, was backed with billions to import more fuel. This, he says, could be defended as a strategic intervention. However, he says, the process quickly transformed into what Simons describes as a “highly opaque gig.”

Bright Simons says, between the programme’s commencement and when it was halted in March 2025, the BoG is said to have supplied about $1.63 billion directly to BOST’s suppliers.

These forex suppliers were outside the normal forex auction system. Bright Simons further alleges that the dollars did not move through the usual open, competitive process. Instead, Simons says, gold was liquidated through shadowy brokers and the proceeds funnelled to little-known fuel traders contracted to supply BOST.

“During the G4O era, the BoG supplied ~$1.63 billion to BOST’s suppliers outside the auction system in a highly opaque arrangement that has never been transparently explained. 12. In effect, a simple process of selling dollars to fuel importers became a highly opaque gig in which BoG liquidated gold for dollars through unknown brokers and then funnelled the cash to mostly obscure fuel traders to supply BOST under shady terms,” the honorary vice president indicated.

He added, “Some of the companies that got the gigs to supply fuel had zero track record in the industry. Indeed, one of them is now subject to criminal proceedings in London for its role in the G4O saga.

The situation, many analysts say, reveals a number of questions that need answers. Why was a programme that claimed to ease forex shortages and reduce fuel prices instead executed in a way that bypassed established systems? Why was the BoG dealing with obscure brokers instead of subjecting the process to open auctions? And most importantly, what safeguards were in place to protect taxpayers and consumers from losses?

With IMANI and other accountability CSOs demanding a criminal probe into the G4O scandal, it is anticipated that these questions will be answered.

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