BoG, Frontclear hold market training on Repo guidelines and ISDA documentation
The Bank of Ghana (BoG), in collaboration with Frontclear, has organised a one-day market training workshop on Repo Guidelines, the Global Master Repurchase Agreement (GMRA), and International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) documentation to strengthen Ghana’s financial market infrastructure and risk management practices.
The workshop, held at the Bank of Ghana’s Urban Block in Accra on Tuesday, brought together representatives from commercial banks, ACI Ghana, the Ghana Fixed Income Market, the Central Securities Depository, the Ghana Securities Industry Association, and other key stakeholders in the financial sector.
Delivering the welcome address, First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Zakari Mumuni, said the initiative forms part of efforts to deepen Ghana’s financial markets while promoting resilience, legal certainty, and efficient financial intermediation.
“A financial market is only as strong as the legal and operational infrastructure beneath it. Volumes tell you how active a market is — documentation, risk frameworks, and legal certainty tell you how safe it is,” Dr. Mumuni stated.
He expressed appreciation to Frontclear for partnering the central bank on what he described as an important initiative aimed at building stable, inclusive, and well-functioning money markets.
According to him, Ghana’s financial markets are evolving rapidly, driven by an expanded fixed-income market and increasingly sophisticated financial instruments, making it necessary to strengthen market infrastructure and legal literacy.
Dr. Mumuni noted that a well-functioning repo market is critical for short-term funding, liquidity management, efficient use of securities as collateral, and effective monetary policy transmission.
“These benefits are fully realised only when participants understand the governing rules, their legal obligations, and the operational risks involved,” he said.
He explained that the GMRA framework provides internationally recognised legal standards for repo transactions by defining counterparty rights and obligations and establishing mechanisms for default management, margining, and close-out netting.
The First Deputy Governor also highlighted the importance of ISDA documentation in derivatives markets, noting that it creates a contractual framework for hedging and risk management while addressing payment obligations, collateral arrangements, events of default, and close-out netting.
Dr. Mumuni said the programme was intentionally structured to bring together treasury, risk, and legal teams from financial institutions to improve collaboration across departments.
“A sound financial transaction demands strong coordination across the front office, risk management, legal, operations, and senior management,” he stressed.
He urged participants to actively engage in discussions on collateral management, legal enforceability, operational readiness, counterparty risk, and close-out netting.
“The integrity of Ghana’s financial markets cannot rest on informal conventions or ambiguous documentation. It must rest on legally enforceable agreements, operationally sound processes, and professionals who understand precisely what they have signed,” he added.
Dr. Mumuni reaffirmed the Bank of Ghana’s commitment to working closely with stakeholders to strengthen market infrastructure, deepen liquidity, and align Ghana’s financial market standards with international best practices adapted to the country’s context.
He officially declared the training programme open and thanked Frontclear, ACI Ghana, and all collaborating institutions for supporting the initiative.
