Banks delaying payments to foreign currency account holders

[Naveed Yaseen]

LAHORE: The open market rate of US Dollar and British Pound touched the highest mark and as a result a number of banks delayed payments to foreign currency account holders, banking industry sources told Daily Times on Friday. The wide gap between inter-bank and open market pushed people to withdraw foreign currency from the banks and sell it to moneychangers. However, the banks kept delaying the requests. The banking sources said that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) should have intervened in such grieved situation and ordered the moneychangers for stopping operations but no such move was made and as a result speculations weakened the Pak rupee to the lowest ever level. The sources said that the banks face pressure because of widening of gap between inter-bank rate and open market rate. The bank rate for US dollar was Rs 81.40 while it was traded at the level of Rs 89 in open market, inter-bank rate for British Pound was Rs 141.02 while it roamed at Rs 148.50, Euro’s rate remained Rs 109.58 and it was traded in open market at Rs 115. The sources said that the local banks asked their head offices for foreign currency but head offices were not responding positively. The central system of banks also went down and customers were told that their payments are delayed due to problem in the system. A banking official of foreign trade on condition of anonymity said that a large number of customers contacted him for payments in foreign currency but due to liquidity crunch, he asked the head office for money but no answer was given till closing time. He said that he was helpless and could not satisfy the customers. “The customers were constantly calling and visiting bank for their payments,” he said. The sources further revealed that the SBP should have played its role at such time but it remained quite and speculation has tightened its grip on the market. The SBP spokesman Waseem ud Din said that if the customers have any complaint regarding payment of money then they should write to SBP with their details. However, the customers say that they kept calling SBP numbers for complaining against the banks but the numbers were continuously engaged. “I have to withdraw 3,000 British Pound from a local bank in Gulberg but for last one day, the manager is saying that there is no foreign currency,” a businessman Muhammad Mubeen said. In many banks, customers were even delayed big payments and people were seen in dismay. nauman tasleem

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