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Jan 19 , 2025

As Brewed Buck Battles, Outliers Banks Dare, Regulators Glare, Forex Scarce

Last week's foreign exchange postings from commercial banks offered a revealing glimpse into currency market pressures. Most banks opted to keep their buying rates below the 125 Br mark, even as a handful of outliers boldly crossed that threshold. The disparity between these rates uncovers a tension...

Jan 12 , 2025

Tsehays Dollar Dash, CBEs Poker Face, a Forex Market Dancing on Edge

The Brewed Buck's relentless downward drift against a basket of major currencies showed little sign of slowing as the new year began last week. The Birr's value against the Dollar was kept under 125, an exchange rate that appears to be propped up by invisible policy levers. Forex managers at several banks, including Dashen, Abyssinia, Awash, and Wegagen, have quietly settled into this new normal, keeping their offers below this threshold. In doing so, they distanced themselves from more bullish peers who continued to push the currency deeper into depreciation. Underlying this divergence...


Jan 5 , 2025

Forex Moves Test Market Boundaries While Caution Casts a Long Shadow

Last week, the foreign exchange market provided a window into the persistent tussle between policy objectives and market forces. An outlier emerged in Tsehay Bank, which decisively pushed past the 125 Br mark in its buying rate, raising eyebrows among industry observers who note the potential for heightened competition to further strain forex availability. From December 30, 2024, to January 4, 2025, the Brewed Buck's gradual depreciation against the Green Buck continued unabated, culminating in a consistent upward trend that led some banks to cross symbolic rate thresholds. Though most bank...


Dec 29 , 2024

Tsehay Bank Breaks the Buck . . . And the Rules of Caution

Tsehay Bank rattled the foreign exchange market last week by offering a buying rate of over 125 Br to the U.S. Dollar, an unusual move attributed by industry observers to its executives' heightened scramble for hard currency. The Bank's rate posted on December 27, 2024, was 125.96 Br for buying, well above the market average. However, ZamZam Bank flirted with the 125 Br threshold yet held a few cents below it for several consecutive days. That caution could reveal the diverging tactics employed by smaller private lenders, many of which lack either the liquidity or appetite to vie aggressive...

Money Market Watch

Dec 22 , 2024

As Liquidity Dries Up, Forex Market Becomes a Battleground for Survival

The modest depreciation of the Birr last week has amplified pressure on the foreign exchange market, exposing underlying systemic vulnerabilities in liquidity management and the stability of the banki...

Dec 15 , 2024

Banks Tiptoe Around Forex Silent Rules, ShrinkingValues

Last week, the banking industry showed unusual uniformity in its posted foreign exchange rates. Most banks maintained a tight band and refrained from breaking what appeared to be an unofficial ceiling...

Dec 8 , 2024

Banks Push, Regulators Pull, the Birr Takes the Fall

The Brewed Buck moved subtly but persistently against the Green Buck over the past week, uncovering deeper structural issues in the foreign exchange market. Between December 2 and December 7, 2024, ra...

Dec 1 , 2024

As Brewed Buck Buckles, Economy Plays Tug-of-War with Liquidity, Sustainability

The Brewed Buck's persistent depreciation against the US Dollar continued unabated over the six days of last week, uncovering the mounting pressures on the fragile economy, besieged by a severe liquid...

Nov 24 , 2024

Dashen Bucks the Trend as Forex Market Tightens Grip on the Birr

Over the past week, the Brewed Buck has been under intensifying pressure, revealing cracks in the foreign exchange market. Banks were seen adopting varied tactics to respond to the scarcity of dollars...

Nov 16 , 2024

Banks Tiptoe Around the Forex Tightrope, but Dashen Dances to Its Own Tune

The foreign exchange market remained notably stable last week, with only subtle fluctuations in the value of the Brewed Buck against the Green Buck. Banks maintained a uniform spread over the six days...

Nov 9 , 2024

Banks Push the Birr to New Lows, Reform Remains a Far-Off Hope

Over the past week, the Brewed Buck has extended its persistent decline against the Green Buck. Between November 4 and 9, 2024, banks posted progressively higher exchange rates, manifesting mounting p...

Nov 3 , 2024

Banks Carve Out Forex Market with High Rollers, Middlemen, and Bargain Hunters

Over six days last week, the Brewed Buck has been on a subtle slide against the U.S. Dollar, with daily fluctuations displaying a persistent weakening trend. Banks have been adjusting their cash and t...

Oct 27 , 2024

CBE, Oromia Bank Break Ranks as the Brewed Buck Buckles

The Brewed Buck's persistent depreciation against the U.S. Dollar persisted over the past week, demonstrating an ongoing struggle with foreign currency shortages and mounting import pressure. The Birr...

Oct 20 , 2024

Mid-tier Banks Outmaneuver Heavyweights as Pressures Mount on Brewed Buck

The Brewed Buck slid noticeably against the U.S. Dollar over the past week, revealing shifts in the foreign exchange market during evolving banking strategies and the Central Bank's interventions. Bet...

Oct 13 , 2024

Brewed Buck on the Ropes as Banks Play Hardball in the Forex Frenzy

The Brewed Buck continued its steep decline against the U.S. Dollar last week, a slide that has accelerated since the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) liberalised the exchange market in late July. Desp...

Oct 6 , 2024

Birrs Steep Slide Fuels a Battle of Wills, Rising Costs

Last week, Birr experienced pronounced volatility against the U.S. Dollar, revealing deep-seated structural imbalances and an immediate liquidity crunch in the foreign exchange market. The turbulence...

Sep 28 , 2024

Banks Remain in a Desperate Scramble as Birr Continues to Bite the Dust

The Birr has continued spiralling downward against the U.S. Dollar over the past week, deepening the predicaments facing the country's financial system since the authorities liberalised the foreign ex...

Sep 22 , 2024

Wild Swings in Birr Rates Reveal Whos Playing It Safe

The foreign exchange market plunged into volatility last week in the aftermath of the Central Bank's decision to float the Birr, leading to sharp disparities in exchange rates among commercial banks....

Sep 14 , 2024

Banks Woo Forex Remitters Amid Holiday Calm as Birr Continues Slide

Birr's relentless depreciation against the U.S. Dollar took a brief pause last week as the New Year holiday introduced an unusual calm to the forex market. Yet, beneath the surface, banks were intensi...

Sep 8 , 2024

Banks Push Boundaries with Widening Forex Spread

The Birr's depreciation against the US dollar has notably accelerated over the past week, unfolding the economic impact of the central bank's decision to float the currency a month ago. Following the...


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