Burundi’s central bank has suspended the licenses of all foreign exchange bureaus in the country, in a move to weed out those flouting official exchange rates.
Following a number of attempts to clamp down on bureaus accused of money laundering, many have been shut down, pending introduction of new rules and regulations as well as the punitive measures to be meted out to guilty parties.
Burundi has experienced a shortage of foreign exchange since 2015
Burundi’s central bank said in a statement earlier this week that it had withdrawn licenses for foreign exchange bureaus for violating rules that allow them to trade currency within an 18% margin of the official exchange rate of 1850 Burundi francs per dollar.
“The licenses which were given to the foreign exchange offices are withdrawn,” the central bank said in the statement on Tuesday, adding that the ban will take effect on Feb.15.
The bank said commercial banks would however be allowed continue exchanging currencies.
Police briefly detained more than 40 money traders in late 2019, accused of violating the foreign exchange trading margins.