Debra Matabvu
Zimbabweans were transacting exclusively in foreign currency and local banknotes Saturday as the country starts transitioning to the new gold-backed unit unveiled by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) on Friday.
Financial institutions and mobile money platforms began converting customers’ Zimdollar balances into ZiG late Friday following presentation of the Monetary Policy Statement by RBZ Governor Dr John Mushayavanhu.
Banks notified clients that their local currency accounts were being converted into ZiG and that Zimdollar transactions had been suspended until further notice.
As a result, all point-of-sale (POS) and mobile money platforms were unavailable yesterday, while retail shops accepted only US dollars and Zimdollar notes.
According to the Bankers Association of Zimbabwe, the process of reconfiguring all Zimdollar accounts is set to be complete by tomorrow at most banks.
In a statement last night, RBZ Governor Dr Mushayavanhu said the ZiG notes and coins were presently in production “and will start circulating in the economy on 30 April 2024” to allow the central bank “to undertake an intensive educational and awareness campaign on the key security features”.
“The campaign is expected to reach out to a wide spectrum of society consistent with the Reserve Bank’s financial inclusion thrust,” he said.
“The Reserve Bank is taking all the necessary steps to ensure that the public is not prejudiced and there is value preservation and transactional convenience during this transitional period.”
He further indicated that the banking sector and payment systems providers had made “satisfactory progress” in converting Zimbabwe dollar balances into ZiG balances. The conversion process will continue for other economic sectors until Friday, 12 April 2024.
“Thereafter, the Reserve Bank expects that all the online payment platforms will be operating smoothly for all transactions in the economy.”
The public has a transitional period of up to 21 days to convert their Zimdollar notes to ZiG, in line with Statutory Instrument 60 of 2024.
“Accordingly, the Zimbabwe dollar notes will continue to be used for transactional purposes at the ZiG: ZW$ conversion factor of 2498.7242 applicable on the 8th of April 2024 within the 21-day transitional period.”
However, electronic transactions for some banks are expected to resume by tomorrow, as Zimswitch, the country’s electronic financial transactions settlement platform, finalises adjusting its systems to accommodate the new currency.
The RBZ was yet to set cash withdrawal limits because “we want to see the reaction of the public before we set the limit”, according to Dr Mushayavanhu.
The gold-backed ZiG will be issued in denominations ranging from 1 ZiG up to 200 ZiG, as well as half ZiG and quarter ZiG. – The Sunday Mail
