News / National
Germany to print bond notes
21 May 2016 at 06:52hrs | Views
Government has hired a German firm to print the $200 million worth of bond notes, a Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe official has said.
RBZ director for exchange control Mr Morris Mpofu told delegates to the Chamber of Mines meeting in Victoria Falls yesterday that Government had engaged the same company that was used by the South African Reserve Bank to print rands.
"The same Germans who printed the South African rands which were recently impounded at Harare International Airport and later released are the ones who are printing the notes," he said.
Mr Mpofu said the introduction of bond notes, which are backed by a $200 million facility provided by the African Export-Import Bank, was not supposed to be a cause for concern since the facility was not permanent but had a limited lifespan.
"The incentive will come and go, we hope that by the time it expires it would have brought in $4 billion," he said. He said it was critical to note that the bond notes were a minute percentage of the deposits that the country was holding. "If you look at this facility it's very little to warrant the return of the Zimdollar," he said.
He said it was critical for people to understand how the facility would work.
"If, for instance, you export goods worth $10 000, when the money is paid into a nostro (foreign) account and your bank credits that money to your account, the RBZ will credit your 5 percent export incentive (worth $500) in bond notes into your account so that your balance will be $10 500. There is no separate account for bond notes and US dollars," said Mr Mpofu.
"If you then go to the bank and get bond notes, you can easily exchange them at any Homelink offices. So there is no need for alarm," he said.
RBZ director for exchange control Mr Morris Mpofu told delegates to the Chamber of Mines meeting in Victoria Falls yesterday that Government had engaged the same company that was used by the South African Reserve Bank to print rands.
"The same Germans who printed the South African rands which were recently impounded at Harare International Airport and later released are the ones who are printing the notes," he said.
Mr Mpofu said the introduction of bond notes, which are backed by a $200 million facility provided by the African Export-Import Bank, was not supposed to be a cause for concern since the facility was not permanent but had a limited lifespan.
"The incentive will come and go, we hope that by the time it expires it would have brought in $4 billion," he said. He said it was critical to note that the bond notes were a minute percentage of the deposits that the country was holding. "If you look at this facility it's very little to warrant the return of the Zimdollar," he said.
He said it was critical for people to understand how the facility would work.
"If, for instance, you export goods worth $10 000, when the money is paid into a nostro (foreign) account and your bank credits that money to your account, the RBZ will credit your 5 percent export incentive (worth $500) in bond notes into your account so that your balance will be $10 500. There is no separate account for bond notes and US dollars," said Mr Mpofu.
"If you then go to the bank and get bond notes, you can easily exchange them at any Homelink offices. So there is no need for alarm," he said.
Source - Herald
