How to Buy Treasury Bills in Ghana: Banks, Mobile Money and What They Pay Now

You buy a Treasury bill in Ghana through a bank, a licensed broker, or straight from your phone — not by turning up at the Bank of Ghana with cash. At the auction held on 9 October 2026 (for bills issued 12 October), the 91-day bill paid an annualised 4.60%, the 182-day bill 6.28%, and the 364-day bill 9.75%, down sharply from the 17–23% rates investors were getting in early 2025. The money you earn on all three is tax-free for individuals, and Ecobank's mobile money route will take as little as GH₵5.

Quick facts: buying Treasury bills in Ghana (checked October 2026)

What is a Treasury bill, and what does it actually pay right now?

A Treasury bill is a short-term loan you make to the Government of Ghana, for 91, 182 or 364 days. You don't collect interest along the way — you buy the bill at a discount to its face value, and the government pays you the full face value back when it matures. The gap between what you pay and what you get back is your return.

Rates move every week at auction. The Bank of Ghana's own notice for Tender 2028, held on 9 October 2026, set these weighted average rates for bills issued on 12 October, covering the week of 12–16 October 2026:

Source: Bank of Ghana, Notice to Banks and Public No. BG/FMD/2026/49, auction of 9 October 2026.

Here's what that means in cedis. Say you put GH₵10,000 into a fresh 91-day bill at these rates:

• You pay roughly GH₵9,886 upfront (the face value discounted at 4.5518% for 91 days out of a 365-day year).
• At maturity, 91 days later, you receive the full GH₵10,000.
• Your GH₵114 gain over 91 days works out to an annualised return of about 4.6% — matching the published interest rate.

Run the same bill out to 364 days instead and the annualised return jumps to 9.75%, because longer money earns a better rate — the trade-off is that it's locked up four times as long.

Rates have fallen a long way from where they were. In March 2025, 91-day bills were paying 17.72% and 364-day bills 18.98%, described at the time as a 20-month low (Citinewsroom, March 2025). By January 2026 the 364-day rate had drifted up slightly to 13.06% (Citinewsroom, January 2026), then fell hard through the rest of the year to the single digits you see above. If you're comparing today's rate to something you read a year ago, assume it's out of date.

How do you actually buy a Treasury bill in Ghana?

You can't bid directly into the Bank of Ghana's wholesale auction — that's reserved for Primary Dealers (the big banks and brokers). The Bank of Ghana's own notice is explicit about this: "the Investing Public interested in purchasing or selling GOG Securities may do so on the Secondary Market (Ghana Fixed Income Market) through Depository Participants (including Primary Dealers)." In practice, that leaves ordinary savers three routes in.

1. Through your bank. Most commercial banks will place a Treasury bill order for you as a customer. GTBank Ghana, for example, says on its own site that you buy its range of bills — including the 91-day and 182-day — "by visiting any of our branches or by speaking to your Relationship Manager" (GTBank Ghana, Treasury Bills). Other banks run the same process through their treasury or investment desks; call ahead to ask what ID and minimum amount they need, since this varies by bank and isn't published centrally.
2. Through a licensed broker or dealer. Investment houses such as Databank also take retail Treasury bill orders. Databank's Direct Debit service, for instance, lets you top up a 91-day bill with GH₵100 or more every month or quarter once you've signed up at a branch or partner location (Starr FM, Databank Direct Debit).
3. From your phone, if you're on MTN. Ecobank's TBILL4ALL service lets MTN Mobile Money customers buy 91-day and 182-day Treasury bills straight from their wallet, with a minimum investment of just GH₵5. You register by dialling *770# (Ecobank Ghana, TBILL4ALL). It's currently the only mobile money route of its kind, and it only runs on MTN — Vodafone Cash and AirtelTigo Money users still need to go through a bank or broker.

Whichever route you use, the bill itself ends up recorded in your name electronically at the Central Securities Depository (CSD), Ghana's settlement body for government securities — your bank or broker sets this up for you as part of placing your first order, you don't apply to the CSD separately (CSD Ghana, debt securities). Have your Ghana Card ready either way — it's the standard ID banks and brokers ask for now, and the PIN on it doubles as your TIN, which they'll need on file to open the account in your name.

How much do you need to open with?

There's no single, Bank-of-Ghana-wide minimum — it depends entirely on how you buy:

• GH₵5 through Ecobank's TBILL4ALL mobile money service — the lowest entry point by far, and the one worth trying first if you just want to see how a Treasury bill works with a small amount.
• From GH₵100 if you're using something like Databank's Direct Debit top-up facility.
• Bank branch minimums vary and aren't published — some will take a few hundred cedis, others set a higher bar for a walk-in customer versus an existing account holder. Ask your relationship manager directly before assuming a figure you've seen on a forum or blog. By contrast, Zambia publishes a single central-bank minimum of K1,000 for individuals; see treasury bills in Zambia.

If a bank, broker or anyone else quotes you a minimum far below what their own branch or app tells you when you actually try to invest, that's a sign to double-check who you're really dealing with.

Is the interest you earn taxed?

No. Interest paid to individuals on bonds and Treasury bills issued by the Government of Ghana is exempt from income tax under the Income Tax Act, 2015 (Act 896) as amended — confirmed in PwC's Ghana tax summary, which states plainly that "the payment of interest to individuals on bonds issued by the government, including interest on treasury bills, is tax exempt." The Ghana Revenue Authority's own withholding tax schedule backs this up: its 8% withholding tax line on interest explicitly excludes individuals and resident financial institutions. So the rate quoted at auction — 4.60%, 6.28% or 9.75% above — is exactly what lands in your account, with nothing deducted. That exemption doesn't carry over if you're investing through a registered business rather than as an individual, so check with your accountant if that's your situation.

The cedis you're putting into a bill in the first place are what's left after tax already came off your salary, so it's worth knowing how PAYE and SSNIT are calculated in Ghana if you're trying to work out how much you can realistically set aside each month.

Can you get your money out before it matures, or roll it over?

Yes to both, with caveats.

Selling early happens on the secondary market — the Ghana Fixed Income Market — not by handing the bill back to the government. You sell it to another investor through your bank or broker (a Depository Participant), and the price depends on where rates have moved since you bought. If rates have fallen since your purchase, you could sell for a profit before maturity; if they've risen, you'll likely take a small loss on the sale price, even though the bill itself was never at risk of default.

Rolling over — reinvesting your proceeds straight into the next auction instead of withdrawing them — is something most banks and brokers will do automatically if you ask, though the exact mechanism (an instruction on your original order form, or a request each time) varies by institution. Confirm which one applies when you place your order, because ticking the wrong box can mean your cash goes straight into another 91 days locked up instead of back into your account.

What to watch out for

• Don't assume the rate you read somewhere is this week's rate. Treasury bill rates are reset at every weekly auction and have moved by several percentage points in a matter of months this year. Always check the current week's figure before you commit.
• Only a bank, licensed broker or the CSD can place a genuine order. If someone outside that chain offers to "get you into" a Treasury bill at a better rate, or asks you to send mobile money to a personal number for it, that's not how it works — walk away.
• Mobile money access is MTN-only, for now. If you're on Vodafone Cash or AirtelTigo Money, TBILL4ALL won't work for you; you'll need a bank or broker instead.
• A 364-day bill ties up your money for a full year. If there's a real chance you'll need the cash sooner, a 91-day bill — or splitting your money across tenors — gives you more flexibility, even at a lower rate.
• Reinvesting what you earn, rather than spending it, is what actually compounds over time. Our compound interest calculator lets you see what rolling your T-bill proceeds over several years would add up to.

For more on where T-bills fit against Ghana's reopened bond market, see our guide to government bonds in Ghana after the restructuring. For wider money matters in the country, our Ghana page rounds up tax, saving and business guides. If you're parking T-bill proceeds toward a specific goal, see what it actually costs to build a 3-bedroom house in Ghana before you set your target.

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum amount to buy a Treasury bill in Ghana?

It depends on the channel. Ecobank's TBILL4ALL mobile money service, available to MTN Mobile Money customers, takes as little as GH₵5. Through a broker like Databank, a monthly top-up facility starts from around GH₵100. Bank branch minimums aren't published centrally and vary by institution, so ask before you go in.

Can I buy Treasury bills directly from the Bank of Ghana?

Not as an individual. The wholesale auction is open only to Primary Dealers — the licensed banks and brokers who bid on everyone's behalf. You buy through one of them, or through another Depository Participant, rather than bidding yourself.

How much do Treasury bills pay in Ghana right now?

At the auction of 9 October 2026, the annualised rate was 4.60% on the 91-day bill, 6.28% on the 182-day bill and 9.75% on the 364-day bill. These reset every week, so treat any figure — including this one — as a snapshot, not a fixed rate.

Do I pay tax on Treasury bill interest in Ghana?

No. Interest paid to individuals on Government of Ghana Treasury bills is exempt from income tax, so the rate you're quoted at auction is what you actually receive.

Can I withdraw my money before the Treasury bill matures?

Yes, by selling it on the secondary market (the Ghana Fixed Income Market) through your bank or broker, rather than cashing it in with the government directly. The price you get depends on how rates have moved since you bought, so you could get slightly more or less than you paid in.

Is it safe to invest in Ghana Treasury bills?

Treasury bills carry the government's backing and have continued to pay out on schedule, including through the period around the 2022–2023 debt restructuring, which mainly affected longer-dated bonds rather than short-term bills. The real risks are a weaker cedi eroding the value of your return if you're thinking in another currency, and locking money up longer than you can afford at the 364-day tenor.