President says BML to ease dollar card limits by end of month

President Mohamed Muizzu has announced that the Bank of Maldives (BML) plans to ease restrictions on US dollar transactions made through locally issued Rufiyaa debit and credit cards by the end of this month.

The President made the remarks during a press conference at the President’s Office on Monday in response to a question regarding difficulties faced by customers using Rufiyaa cards for online purchases and foreign e-commerce transactions.

BML previously introduced restrictions on certain foreign currency transactions conducted through Rufiyaa cards after demand for US dollars exceeded the amount of foreign currency available to the bank.

Addressing the issue, President Muizzu said the restrictions were initially introduced because of liquidity constraints.

“However, when I requested information and looked into it with the bank yesterday, they indicated that they will ease the limits very significantly around the end of this month,” the President said.

BML has previously stated that higher levels of e-commerce activity generally increase the bank’s revenue. However, the bank said the gap between foreign currency inflows and customer demand for US dollars had made restrictions necessary.

According to the bank, the measures were introduced to preserve foreign currency for priority transactions and essential customer needs.

The restrictions have affected purchases from a number of overseas online retailers and digital service providers, prompting concerns from customers who rely on Rufiyaa cards for international payments.

Neither the President nor the bank provided details on the new limits or the extent of the planned changes.

Further information is expected to be announced by BML closer to the implementation date.