Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe reviews transaction limits

THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has reviewed upwards the transaction limits for mobile and electronic funds transfers following the recent exchange rate movement.

In September, RBZ liberalised the exchange rate, devaluing the local currency for the first time since its adoption in April, while tightening the screws on loans by raising the bank lending rate from 20 percent to 35 percent with immediate effect.

The Central Bank devalued the official Zimbabwe Gold (ZWG) rate by about 42,5 percent to settle at ZWG24,39 to the greenback, following the then sky-rocketing black market rates.

This week, the official exchange rate is ZWG27,9 to US$1 with the parallel marketing trading above ZWG30 to the dollar.

The RBZ has also reduced the amount of foreign currency an individual can carry outside the country from US$10 000 to US$2 000.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ)

In a recent update, RBZ said to reflect the movement in the exchange rate, the mobile money transactional limits have been reviewed from ZWG2 400 for person-to-person, person-to-business, and ZIPIT transaction limit to ZWG4 800 and monthly limit from ZWG4 800 to ZWG16 000.

“The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe wishes to advice the public that transactional limits for payments made via mobile money and electronic funds transfer platforms have been reviewed upwards to further support the payment for goods and services in ZiG,” reads the RBZ update.

The bank also said electronic funds’ new transactional limits based on exchange rate movements were reviewed from ZWG280 000 batch limit to ZWG560 000 for business-to-business transactions and from ZWG24 000 transaction limit to ZWG48 000 and from business-to-person batch limit of ZWG80 000 to ZWG160 000 and transaction limit of ZWG16 000 from ZWG8 000.

ZiG

While the economy had experienced relative stability since the adoption of the ZWG in April up to mid-August 2024, the few weeks of August and the first weeks of September witnessed a rapid loss of value for the local unit, sparking consumer outcry over the loss of purchasing power and erosion of savings by businesses.

This has resulted in the Governments reviewing upward the official exchange rate from around ZWG14 to ZWG24,39, chasing the black-market rate, which was hovering around ZWG28 per US$1.

Economic experts have welcomed the interventions, which are part of comprehensive measures aimed at tackling the resurgent exchange rate volatility, easing inflationary pressures to protect consumers and consolidating macro-economic stability. —chroncile