Myanmar pays interest

Myanmar pays interest

RANGOON (Reuter): Myanmarese private banks that are authorized to conduct foreign banking business will for the first time be allowed to pay interest on foreign currency deposits, official media reported on Saturday.

Finance and Revenue Minister Brigadier-General Win Tin said banks would be allowed to pay interest on the deposits effective July 1, state-run newspapers reported.

He said these banks could earn foreign exchange income to pay interest by depositing their foreign exchange in interest-bearing accounts with banks abroad or by extending loans in foreign currency locally.

The central bank would notify the banks of the deposit and lending rates to be used, based on the Singapore Interbank Offered Rate (SIBOR).

There are 17 local private banks in Myanmar with 21 branches in major cities. Seven of them have been authorized to conduct foreign exchange transactions.