The Bank of Maldives (BML) has pushed back on growing speculation about its US dollar allocations for Telegraphic Transfers (TT). Specifically, the bank has clarified that it has neither cut the volume nor reduced the frequency for BML TT allocation for businesses.
Instead, BML has tightened its procedures to ensure a fairer, more orderly process.
Setting the Record Straight
BML CEO Mohamed Shareef addressed the issue at a press conference today. Notably, his remarks responded to recent criticism on social media and across various news platforms regarding constraints on USD access for the business community.
Shareef confirmed that the underlying policy on TT remains unchanged. Moreover, the total volume of foreign currency the bank releases for TT purposes has not dropped. The shift, he explained, lies in how the bank now processes requests, not in how much it provides.
How Some Businesses Game The System
The CEO walked through a clear example to explain the bank’s reasoning. Some businesses, he said, submit TT requests that bear little relation to their actual revenue or the genuine scale of their operations. Therefore, BML has moved to align dollar allocations more closely with each company’s real economic footprint.
Under current policy, the bank can facilitate only 10 percent of a TT request on any given day. Even at the 50 percent allocation tier, a fixed cap applies. To work around the cap, however, certain entities split a single large transaction into ten smaller ones. Subsequently, they submit ten separate TT requests to claim the 50 percent allocation on each.
The bank’s tightened procedures aim to detect and curb that pattern. Furthermore, the move protects businesses that operate within the rules and rely on predictable foreign currency access.
Why It Matters
Foreign currency access remains a sensitive issue for Maldivian importers, travel agents, and service exporters. Specifically, the country’s reliance on imports means a steady flow of dollars matters for everything from groceries to construction materials. Therefore, any perceived squeeze on BML TT allocation quickly draws scrutiny.
By clarifying that the volume of dollars has not changed, BML has tried to defuse the most damaging part of the speculation. In addition, the bank has signaled that fairness, not scarcity, is driving the new procedures.
Bigger Picture
The clarification comes at a time when foreign currency demand has risen sharply. Earlier in April, BML disclosed that it had sold four times more dollars for TTs so far this year compared with the same period in 2024. Furthermore, total US dollar sales by the bank have crossed USD 600 million across individuals, businesses, and corporates.
Against that backdrop, the tightened BML TT allocation procedures look less like a retreat and more like a recalibration. Ultimately, the bank’s message is straightforward. The dollars are still flowing. However, they will flow in proportion to the genuine size of each business that asks for them.