via RBZ to issue $5m worth of 50c coins | The Herald March 6, 2015
THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) will by the end of this month receive $5 million worth of 50c bond coins to complete the cycle of other denominations already circulating. In an interview RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya said the central bank has not deviated from its initial promise that the coins will be rolled out from the period December 2014 to March 2015.
“We will deliver on what we said and by end of this month the 50c coins will be in circulation,” he said.
Other denominations that are currently in circulation include 1c, 5c, 10c and 25c.
The bond coins are part of the $50 million facility that RBZ arranged for the purposes of providing the coins with intrinsic value.
Dr Mangudya said the coins will necessitate correct pricing for goods and services and will also go a long way in mitigating the country’s lopsided pricing structure.
Under normal circumstances, the proportion of coins to money in circulation in an economy is between 20 to 25 percent, however due to the fact that Zimbabwe is using multiple currencies, bond coins are envisaged to remain below 10 percent of total bank deposits.
On the uptake of non-performing loans by ZAMCO, Dr Mangudya said to date over $65 million has been acquired from five banks but the company is overwhelmed by situations where asset value has been eroded leaving banks in difficult positions.
According to the central bank the acquisition of NPLs will be done in a phased manner and from a valuation carried to date, about 45 percent of the loans are secured by mortgages.
Zamco is currently acquiring the bad loans through cash and Treasury Bills.
The NPL ratio excluding troubled banks was at 12 percent in September last year.
Industry-wide the ratio was at 20 percent in December and is now at 15,91 percent following the closure of three banks Allied Bank, AfrAsia and Interfin. — Wires.
COMMENTS