செலாவணி வீதக் கொள்கைகள், ஒதுக்கு முகாமைத்துவம் மற்றும் வௌிநாட்டுச் செலாவணி பாய்ச்சல்கள்
Being the apex financial institution of the country, the Central Bank provided its full scope of essential services to the economy and the financial system during the lockdown. The Central Bank actively took steps to ease the burden on the general public during this unprecedented disruption of global scale, while preserving the focus on its legal mandate to maintain economic, price and financial system stability.
Timeline
24 April 2020 |
The Central Bank commenced forward intervention to curtail the excess volatility in the forward rates. |
16 April 2020 | Directions issued to Authorised Dealers informing that loans granted to Sri Lankans employed abroad shall be recovered in Sri Lanka Rupees, as a last resort where necessary when recovery of such loans in foreign is remote. |
09 April 2020 | In addition, Net open positions (NOP) of LCBs were curtailed on a selective basis to prevent speculative activity in the foreign exchange market. |
08 April 2020 |
Hon. Minister of Finance in consultation with the Monetary Board and with the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers issued regulations to introduce a Special Deposit Account for any Sri Lankan individual resident in or outside Sri Lanka including Dual Citizens, Citizens of other States with Sri Lankan origin and any person resident outside Sri Lanka including funds, corporate bodies, association and other well-wishers with the following special features. • Minimum tenure: 6 months. |
03 April 2020 | Alongside other regulatory measures taken by the Central Bank to support businesses and individuals affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, directions were also issued to Authorised Dealers informing them to recover any foreign currency loans granted to Business Foreign Currency Account holders in Sri Lanka Rupees, when recovery of such loans in foreign currency is remote, as a last resort by converting such loans to Sri Lanka Rupee denominated loans, where necessary. |
02 April 2020 |
Introduced following temporary regulatory measures on outward remittances for a period of 3 months. • Suspend the general permission granted to make outward remittances through the Outward Investment Accounts for the purpose of investing overseas by persons resident in Sri Lanka excluding the following; - investments to be financed out of a foreign currency loan obtained by the investor from a person resident outside Sri Lanka under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Act, or • Suspend outward remittances through Business Foreign Currency Accounts or Personal Foreign Currency Accounts held by persons resident in, Sri Lanka other than for the remittances on current transactions. - the proposed investment is to be financed out of a foreign currency loan obtained by the investor from a person resident outside Sri Lanka under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Act, or |
20 March 2020 | The Central Bank introduced Sell-Buy Forex SWAP Auctions for LCBs to provide foreign currency liquidity on term basis without depleting the foreign reserves with the accessibility to the external liquidity sources have been restricted owing to uncertainty created through pandemic situation. This a very effective tool as it supports to curtail the excess volatility in the exchange rate without depleting the foreign reserves of Central Bank. |
20 March 2020 | In conjunction with the Banking Act Directions issued on 19 March 2020, the Central Bank also issued Directions to Authorised Dealers, requesting them to suspend release of foreign exchange with immediate effect for the importation of certain non-essential consumer goods under the Documents Against Payments and Open Account Payment terms, for a period of three months until 20 June 2020. |
19 March 2020 | To further ease the pressure on the exchange rate from the demand side, the Central Bank issued Directions to Authorised Dealers informing them to issue foreign currency notes up to a maximum of US dollars 5,000 (or its equivalent in other foreign currency) as travel allowance to persons resident in Sri Lanka travelling abroad for any purpose, from the previously permitted travel allowance of US dollars 10,000. |
19 March 2020 |
With a view to easing the pressure on the exchange rate and the stress on financial markets due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Central Bank issued Banking Act Directions to LCBs and National Savings Bank to: • suspend facilitation of the importation of; - all types of motor vehicles, other than those excluded specifically under the Banking Act Directions, under Letters of Credit; • suspend the purchase of Sri Lanka International Sovereign Bonds. Both measures were introduced for a period of 3 months. |
Regulations, Directions and Press Releases
1. Special Deposit Accounts
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
2182/32 | Special Deposit Account under Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017 | 01.07.2020 |
2170/04 | Special Deposit Account under Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017 | 08.04.2020 |
06 - 2020 | Special Deposit Account | 06.07.2020 |
04 - 2020 | Special Deposit Account | 09.04.2020 |
Press Release | Further Measures to Encourage Opening of Special Deposit Accounts | 13.07.2020 |
Press Release | Clarification on opening Special Deposit Accounts | 03.07.2020 |
Press Release | Introducing a Special Deposit Account to Support the National Effort to Manage the Challenges Faced due to COVID-19 Outbreak | 12.04.2020 |
2. Outward Remittances for Capital Transactions
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
2182/37 | Order issued under Section 22 of the Foreign Exchange Act, No. 12 of 2017 | 02.07.2020 |
2169/3 | Restriction on outward remittances through OIA under Section 22 of Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017 | 02.04.2020 |
Press Release | The Government and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Introduce Further Measures to Preserve the Foreign Currency Reserve Position of Sri Lanka | 09.04.2020 |
3. Release of Foreign Exchange for Travel Purpose
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
01 - 2020 | Release of Foreign Currency Notes for Travel Purpose | 19.03.2020 |
4. Relief Measures for Foreign Exchange Borrowers
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
05 - 2020 | Loans and Advances to Sri Lankans Employed Abroad (other than emigrants) | 16.04.2020 |
03 - 2020 | Concessions/Exemptions for BFCA Borrowers | 03.04.2020 |
5. Remittance of Studies and Short-Term Visits
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
Press Release | Remittance of Funds to Sri Lankans Abroad to Pursue Studies and on Short Term Visits, to Meet Their Expenses | 20.04.2020 |
6. Payment Restrictions for Import of Non-essential Goods
Gazette/ Directions No. | Description | Issued Date |
02 - 2020 | Payments for Imports made on Documents Against Payments and Open Account Payment Terms | 2020-03-20 |
Reserve Management Policy
CBSL follows prudential reserve management policies while maintaining a balance between safety, liquidity and return objectives. In this context, high priority is given to preserve the level of reserves of the country. Regular interactions with foreign counterparts were held to preserve investor confidence in the Sri Lankan economy.
Timeline
11 Aug 2020 | Enrolled to obtain a Repo Facility for US dollars 1,000 million from Federal Reserve Bank New York, to meet the contingent liquidity needs of the government. |
31 July 2020 | CBSL operationalized and obtained the funds under the bilateral currency swap agreement entered between CBSL and RBI amounting to USD 400 mn. |
04 May 2020 | Central Bank contributed to building-up of foreign exchange reserves of the country, by purchasing USD from the domestic foreign exchange market, if the market is conducive, even during the pandemic period. Central Bank also entered into new Buy – Sell SWAPs on net basis for this purpose. |
08 April 2020 | As government could not raise adequate liquidity owing to the unprecedented adverse market conditions, the Central Bank continued to provide liquidity from the foreign reserves of the Central Bank since 08 April 2020 to date, to settle the government debt using the reserve buffer maintained by Central Bank. |
Press Release
19.05.2020 | Sri Lanka Reiterates its Commitment to Meeting all its Financial Obligations |