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By Libya Herald staff.
Benghazi, 26 September 2014:
The Bank of Commerce & Development is reported to have stopped its Visa debit card . . .[restrict]customers from withdrawing cash from ATMs in Turkey, UAE and elsewhere. It is claimed that customers have been taking advantage of the high value of the dinar to withdraw large amount of cash in hard currency while abroad and then bringing it back to Libya and exchanging it on the black market at considerable profit.
Customers at the Aman Bank, however, are not being prevented from withdrawing cash abroad.
Despite appeals from the business community for the dinar to be allowed float, the authorities and the Central Bank of Libya have rigorously maintained the Qaddafi regime’s policy of exchange controls, resulting in a flourishing black market with cash reserves several time the size of the official banking system.
On of the results has been that, until the recent political crisis, Libyans have on regular occasions been able to buy dollars and euros at the official rate then almost immediately likewise sell them a profit on the black market without ever needing to leave the country. [/restrict]
