MMA auctioning dollars to banks

The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has begun auctioning dollars to banks, which are now able to sell them at up to Rf15.42.

The dollars distributed to banks were previously limited to set amounts. The MMA has declined to reveal which banks have won the first auction, held yesterday, or the exchange rate involved.

Haveeru reported that banks that did not win the auction had not traded dollars today.

The government last week implemented a managed float of the rufiya within a 20 percent band of the pegged rate of Rf12.85, a move praised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).