The Bank of Lao PDR (BOL) has issued a statement to dismiss false claims circulating online that suggest foreign currency bank account holders may no longer be able to make transactions in their respective currencies.
The statement was made after a social media post said that residents with a foreign currency account in commercial banks would be prohibited from conducting transactions in their chosen currency.
The rumor, which gained traction on social media, alleged that individuals who possessed foreign currency bank accounts would be unable to make withdrawals in their desired currency, effective from September of this year.
However, the central bank of Laos has dismissed these rumors and issued a clarification in this regard saying, “In accordance with foreign currency management laws and related regulations, both individuals and legal entities, whether domestic or foreign, who maintain foreign currency deposit accounts with commercial banks in Laos, are entitled to receive interest and make withdrawals in foreign currency, subject to the relevant regulations.”
Consequently, the central bank in Laos has urged everyone to exercise caution and refrain from believing false unverified information, which is not communicated to them by relevant government authorities.
The Lao Government has been increasingly clamping down on foreign currency exchange shops in the country to stabilize the Lao Kip and increase its circulation by only allowing commercial banks to trade in foreign currency at rates suggested by the BOL.
