The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) reported a significant increase in the dollar reserves of commercial banks, from a deficit of 465 million dollars to a surplus of 600 million dollars between the first four months of the fiscal year—July to October. Habtamu Workneh, director of External Economic Analysis and International Relations Directorate at NBE, made the statement during a panel discussion at the Addis Chamber annual members day event held at the Intercontinental Hotel on Guinea Conakry Street on last year. He accentuated that the macroeconomic reforms have created substantial opportunities for the banking sector, noting that the price variation for the dollar in the parallel market has reduced from 97pc in July to 7.8pc by November 27. Several sectors have shown growth, he added, with exports increasing by 110pc and remittances by 25pc. Before the July reform, the Central Bank had been selling 50,000 dollars to commercial banks every day to stabilize the forex market. Post-reform, interbank forex transactions surged to 30 million dollars on November 15 and 22. Independent foreign bureaus purchased 774,027 dollars and sold 574,023 dollars between October 2 and November 25. NBE has authorized 12 bureaus, with five currently active. Habtamu explained that these bureaus higher buying and selling rates, based on cash transactions, are standard practice in neighboring countries. Another presenter at the Chamber’s member’s day event was Tewodros Hailu, director of the Bank Transformation Directorate at Awash Bank. He acknowledged the opportunities presented by the reform but pointed out challenges such as losses due to Birr's depreciation against foreign currencies, particularly for banks with significant foreign currency liabilities. He noted that imports fell from 1.5 billion dollars in August 2023 to 1.2 billion dollars in August 2024 due to banking uncertainty and liquidity issues among importers. Tewodros recommended allowing banks to utilize additional transaction instruments like forward foreign exchange mechanisms to mitigate foreign exchange risks, increasing advance permission limits without guarantees, and easing some payment system requirements. He also emphasized the need to enhance the skills of employees involved in international trade and boost capital to compete in a liberalized market.
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