Nearly three years after Myanmar’s junta overthrew an elected civilian government, it has issued a directive declaring that it will no longer set and maintain fixed exchange rates for foreign currencies.
On Tuesday, the regime-controlled Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) notified banks licensed to trade foreign currencies that they would no longer set the exchange rate for them, so the banks would be permitted to trade foreign currency according to market prices.
CBM spokesperson director general Aung Aung confirmed to Myanmar Now on Wednesday that the directive that has been circulating on social media since Tuesday night is genuine.
A local businessman described the junta's decision to abandon fixed US dollar rates as akin to relinquishing control over the trajectory of foreign exchange.
The current market exchange rate is around 3,500 kyat per dollar, whereas the rate set by authorities was around 2,100. . .
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