Central Bank of Sudan halves transfer limits as Sudanese Pound plummets

The Sudanese Pound continues its downward plunge against international currencies, with reports that the US Dollar is currently changing hands for more than SDG1,020. The Central Bank of Sudan (CBoS) has halved limits on transfers from both regular and ‘privileged’ accounts.

The value of the embattled Sudanese Pound (SDG) has continued its sharp downward trend in the wake of the ongoing war ravaging Sudan. On Monday, the US Dollar was trading at more than SDG1,020 on the parallel market, while the Bank of Khartoum and the Omdurman National Bank quoted official rates of SDG728 and SDG750 for the greenback respectively.

The Central Bank of Sudan has halved limits on transfers from both regular and ‘privileged’ accounts. In an announcement on Monday, the CBoS says that the daily maximum for a regular account has been set at SDG3 million, with a maximum of SDG1 million per transaction, with a monthly ceiling of SDG50 million. The daily limit for a ‘privileged’ account has been set at SDG5 million, with a monthly limit of SDG100 million.

This halves limits imposed last month, which limited a regular account to SDG6 million, and a ‘privileged’ account at SDG10 million per week, and SDG100 million and SDG200 million respectively per month. At the time, the US Dollar was trading at SDG900 on the parallel market, and cost SDG635 via a bank.

Sudanese banking expert Mohamed Esmat attributed the sharp decline in the value of the Pound to the increasing demand for the Dollar in pursuit of imports that require foreign currency. “It seems that there is a huge mass of local currency, that someone has injected into the market, that is being converted into foreign currencies to meet obligations outside Sudan,” he told Radio Dabanga last month.

Digital payments

On Monday, Faisal Islamic Bank* and Visa multinational payment services, signed a multi-year partnership to provide solutions for digital payments. The agreement with Visa aims to provide an integrated package of the latest financial services and digital payment solutions.

A statement from the bank, which offers financial services in conformity with Islamic Sharia law, says that the agreement comes within the framework of implementing the bank’s plans that aim to achieve digital transformation and encourage customers to use electronic payment systems. The agreement also aims to facilitate payment for their purchases through all the payment methods it provides, the bank says.

The signing took place between the Executive Vice President of Faisal Islamic Bank, Amin Fadel Al-Tayeb Shubaika and the Executive Director of Visa in Libya and Sudan, Ahmed Mohi, in the presence of the Director of Digital Transformation at Faisal Islamic Bank, Ahmed Jaafar Abdel Rahim, and a number of officials from both parties.

Faisal Islamic Bank launched Mastercard payment services in Sudan in 2021, in what was hailed as ‘a milestone for financial services’, to issue Mastercard-branded debit, credit, and prepaid payment cards in Sudan for use online, in-store, and at ATMs. FIB will also connect local businesses to the Mastercard network.

* Faisal Islamic Bank

Since its establishment in 1978, Faisal Islamic Bank (Sudan) has over 80 branches across Sudan. The Bank takes the lead in providing new sophisticated financial products that are Sharia-compliant. FIB is credited for its role in establishing and consolidating the Islamic finance industry across the globe as it is considered the first Islamic bank established in Sudan and among the first established Islamic banks across the world, where the Bank established the world’s first Shari’a Supervisory Board in 1979, and also established the world’s first Islamic insurance company, Islamic Insurance Company LTD, in 1979.

(Source: Mastercard)