The Ghanaian cedi pulled off something remarkable in 2025—it surged nearly 50% against the US dollar since the start of the year, climbing from around ₵15 per dollar to just above ₵10. By September, the year-to-date gain stood at 23% despite a brutal third quarter. From October 2024 to October 2025, the currency appreciated 39.16% relative to the dollar. Not bad for a currency that hit a historic low of 16.48 per dollar in November 2024.
From historic lows of ₵16.48 to ₵10 per dollar—the cedi's 50% surge defied expectations in 2025.
The rally wasn't smooth. The cedi ranked as the world's best-performing currency in Q2 2025 with a 50% gain, then became the world's worst performer in Q3 with a 13% depreciation. That's quite the rollercoaster. By September 3, it was trading at 11.9507 per dollar.
Gold drove much of the surge. Prices exploded from $2,000 per ounce in 2024 to $3,400 in May 2025. Export revenue jumped from $7.6 billion in 2023 to $11.6 billion in 2024. Ghana's gold reserves tripled from 9 tonnes in late 2023 to 31 tonnes. The Gold Board policy requiring domestic purchases settled in cedis before export pumped more dollars into the system. Oil and non-traditional exports pushed the trade surplus to $4.3 billion in 2024.
The Bank of Ghana played its part. It raised the policy rate to 28% in March, then cut it to 18% by November as inflation dropped from 21.2% in April to 6.30%. Gross international reserves reached $11.1 billion by June, hitting a record $11.4 billion in March. The IMF's $3 billion bailout helped. Treasury bill yields collapsed from 28% to 15%. The central bank's monetary policy decisions mirrored strategies used by other African monetary authorities to balance currency stability with economic growth targets.
The Q3 weakness came from surging dollar demand for import bills before holidays. The central bank supplied only half of banks' dollar requests initially, avoiding full deployment of reserves. Forecasts predicted the cedi would trade at 10.32 by quarter's end and 9.91 in twelve months. Despite the volatility, the currency's 2025 performance secured its spot as Africa's fourth best. The trading characteristics of the cedi—marked by high volatility and sensitivity to commodity prices—became more apparent to international investors during this period. The dramatic appreciation reshaped the cedi's standing in the foreign exchange market, where it transitioned from one of Africa's most vulnerable currencies to a standout performer among emerging market pairs.
