Sri Lanka turns to mystery investor in bid to defend rupee

12 January 2016 03:18 am - 0 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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RUETERS: An unidentified investor has promised to park US $ 1 billion in dollar deposits in Sri Lanka to help the island nation defend its currency, the Finance Minister told Reuters, in an unusual move that highlights the country’s precarious finances.

Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake declined to reveal the identity of the investor. But he said the investor was Belgian and was working with a Sri Lankan partner.

The investor has promised to transfer the money in two equal tranches from banks in Brussels and Luxembourg, the minister said.

“Instead of going for bonds and other borrowing, we are permitting it to take place,” Karunanayake said. “This is better than negative returns in Europe”, for investors, he said.

The deposits, which pay an interest rate of 2 percent, are part of the ministry’s plans to raise US $ 3 billion to US $ 4 billion to shore up reserves and defend the rupee, which has hovered around record lows since the Central Bank floated it on September 4. Sri Lanka has run up a large budget deficit, forcing the government to borrow heavily and putting pressure on the rupee.

It is now also battling a growing balance-of-payments crisis.

Remittances from expatriate workers, worth about US $ 5.8 billion in the first 10 months of last year, are expected to dry up because of the political turmoil in the Middle East.

Foreign reserves, which stood at US $ 7.3 billion on December 31, are under pressure as US $ 5 billion is expected to be repaid on foreign loans in 2016, according to the Central Bank data.

Financial experts said bringing in so much money from an individual investor was fraught with risks. Karunanayake has already liberalised dollar remittances from foreigners into the country. “This allows room for money-laundering. Black money could easily come through this,” said Sirimal Abeyratne, an economics professor at the University of Colombo.

“Also, this money could go out quickly creating further volatility,” Abeyratne said.

Karunanayake said anybody who felt black money was coming in could take up the matter in the courts.

A senior Finance Ministry official said it was the responsibility of the remitting bank in Europe to check the source of funds and know their customers.
“Sri Lanka will not question any investors who want to remit the money,” the official said.

The first tranche of US $ 500 million from the Sri Lankan investor’s partner was deposited on December 26, and the second is expected to arrive some time this month, Karunanayake said. So far, the country has got US $ 1.5 billion from such deposits, Karunanayake said.

He said the deposit has no lock-in period and the government would allow withdrawals at any time.

“This is to give confidence to the investors,” Karunanayake said. The money from the investor - and others - appears to have helped. Dealers said the Central Bank was selling dollars. The Sri Lankan rupee closed steady at 143.75/85 to the dollar yesterday. It hit an all-time low of 144.30 hit on December 30. “What I feel is the authorities have the dollars to control the market since the last week of December,” a currency dealer said.

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Sri Lanka turns to mystery investor in bid to defend rupee

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