Zimbabwe warns schools, pharmacies against currency manipulation

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe today warned schools and pharmacies against manipulating the local currency saying it would deploy all tools at its disposal to deal with the malpractice.

The Zimbabwe dollar has been pegged at $108.67 against the United States dollar since the last foreign currency auction on 14 December.

The auction was supposed to resume yesterday but was postponed by a week because dealers were not able to process bids on time.

In a statement today the central bank said its Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) was investigating cases of breaches of the Bank Use Promotion Act and currency manipulations by some business entities.

“The breaches have become particularly pronounced and prevalent at some schools and pharmacies,” it said. “The FIU will deploy all tools at its disposal to deal with such malpractices including imposition of fines, freezing of bank accounts and blacklisting from enjoyment of financial services.”

Zimbabwe postponed the re-opening of schools, which was scheduled for 10 January, until it reviews current lockdown restrictions probably tomorrow or on Friday.

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