The National Bank of Angola (BNA) has authorised the country’s commercial banks to use the Chinese currency, the yuan, to meet mandatory foreign currency reserve requirements, reinforcing the growing importance of the Chinese currency in the Angolan financial system.

The decision is set out in a directive dated 2 July and recently published on the central bank’s official website. With this change, financial institutions are now able to include the yuan among the eligible assets used to meet part of the regulatory requirements related to mandatory foreign currency reserves.

The measure comes amid the growing internationalisation of the Chinese currency in Africa. In recent years, the yuan has gained importance in the continent’s trade and financial transactions, driven by China’s role as the main trading partner of several African countries and one of the largest financiers of infrastructure projects.

For Angola, the decision could facilitate financial operations linked to bilateral trade with China, while also diversifying the assets used by commercial banks to fulfil their regulatory obligations to the central bank.

(Source: Angola 24 Horas, 11 July)