Release date: December 6, 2023 10:12
![A money changer shows a $100 bill at a bank exchange office in Yangon. (Photo: Reuters)](https://static.bangkokpost.com/media/content/20231206/c1_2699444_231206101418.jpg)
A money changer shows a $100 bill at a bank exchange office in Yangon. (Photo: Reuters)
Myanmar’s central bank will no longer set exchange rates for foreign currencies, allowing banks and authorized dealers to determine their own rates, state media reported on Wednesday, in an unusual relaxation of some strict regulations.
The report did not provide a reason for Tuesday’s decision by the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM), and no notice of the policy change was posted on the CBM’s website. Calls to CBM went unanswered early Wednesday morning.
With Myanmar’s economy in tatters in the aftermath of the 2021 coup, financial authorities are cracking down on black market transactions while seeking to tighten controls on foreign currency to curb demand, and licenses of more than 140 money exchangers in violation. has been canceled. Year.
Under military rule, there has been a shift from a managed floating exchange rate system to a dependence on administrative controls, such as the forfeiture of foreign currency to companies and regulations on reporting exchange transactions. Exporters must convert their dollar income into kyat at the official rate set by the central bank, which ordered in August not to use the foreign currency for domestic transactions, to ease pressure on the kyat currency.
The World Bank said in a June report that Myanmar’s economy is showing signs of stabilization, but is constrained by sluggish investment, with companies struggling with rising costs and difficulties in procuring materials and earning foreign currency. said.