More than G$1.2 trillion is being held in Guyana’s commercial banks, but lending has not kept pace with the rapid build-up in deposits, according to an analysis by local financial consultant and business advisory firm, SphereX Professional Services.
In its August 2026 Macro-Financial Policy Note, SphereX said commercial bank deposits increased from approximately G$214 billion in 2009 to G$1.2907 trillion by June 2026.
Over the same period, mortgage-inclusive loans grew from G$91.7 billion to approximately G$600.7 billion. This placed the loan-to-deposit ratio at just 46.5 per cent, meaning more than half of the deposit base was not deployed as loans.
SphereX described the situation as one where the scale of the banking system has recovered, but financial intermediation remains shallow.
The firm’s analysis also found that liquid assets reached G$549.7 billion by May 2026, including G$401 billion in Treasury bills. Excess reserves stood at another G$81.7 billion in March 2026.
Relative to the non-oil economy, SphereX’s current proxy puts commercial bank deposits at approximately 79.9 per cent of 2025 non-oil GDP, while loans represented about 37.2 per cent.
The gap between deposits and loans was equivalent to approximately 42.7 per cent of non-oil GDP. However, SphereX cautioned that these are diagnostic figures, with the latest 2026 banking data being compared against a 2025 GDP denominator.
A chart contained in the report also shows that the loan-to-deposit ratio was above 60 per cent during parts of the previous decade before falling significantly in subsequent years. By June 2026, it stood at 46.5 per cent. SphereX summarised the trend by stating that “Liquidity has rebuilt faster than credit intermediation.”
The large pool of liquidity also has implications for monetary policy.
SphereX explained that banks with abundant liquidity have limited need to obtain funding from the central bank, weakening the effectiveness of conventional interest-rate policy.
The report noted that Guyana’s Bank Rate has remained at 5 per cent since 2013, but the SphereX model recorded only two interbank trades in 2025 and none during the first quarter of 2026.
At the same time, 91-day Treasury bills were yielding approximately 1.1 per cent, while the small-savings rate was around 0.81 per cent.
“A credible policy stance requires instruments that move market prices, not only a policy rate that banks do not need to access,” SphereX stated.
More investment options needed
SphereX believes developing Guyana’s financial markets could provide more productive outlets for the large volume of savings currently concentrated in the banking system.
The firm said Guyana has a relatively shallow range of investment options, leaving households, businesses, pension funds and insurers concentrated in low-yield bank deposits, Treasury holdings, real estate or offshore assets.
According to the report, this limits domestic capital formation, weakens price discovery and reduces the effectiveness of monetary-policy transmission.
SphereX is therefore proposing the gradual development of a wider domestic investment market, including benchmark government securities, retail government securities, corporate bonds, collective investment vehicles and, eventually, pathways for small and medium-sized businesses and private equity.
“Market deepening changes the channels through which national savings are priced, invested and retained,” the firm said, arguing that Guyana needs both stronger liquidity management and deeper financial markets.
