English

Lukashenka discusses government guarantees of deposits

Alyaksandr Lukashhenka held a government conference on November 4 to discuss a draft presidential decree and a draft presidential edict concerning the government’s guarantees of individuals’ bank deposits.

These documents are not prompted by any emergency circumstances, the Belarusian leader said, according to his press office. Belarus has now found itself in a more advantageous situation than other countries in the face of the present global economic challenges, he was quoted as saying. “Our people trust both the government and the banking system, however difficult it may be,” he reportedly said. “They haven’t rushed to massively withdraw their deposits.”

If people did not trust the banking system, nobody would keep savings in banks, he noted.
He explained that the need to adopt additional mechanisms of preserving people’s deposits was prompted by the government’s “care for the stability of the national currency and its intention to protect the interests of the people that keep money in banking institutions.”

However, he noted, “although Belarus has been affected by negative processes in the world’s financial markets to a lesser degree than neighbors, it’s necessary to take into consideration our involvement in the global economy.” In a situation where many are suffering from the global financial and economic crisis, Belarus should significantly advance in economic liberalization considering that the necessary levers for this are in place, he said.

Mr. Lukashenka noted that a presidential decree dated April 20, 1998 guarantees foreign currency deposits in the country’s six largest banks. Moreover, he said, a July 8, 2008 law provides for the government’s guarantees of rubel and foreign currency deposits amounting to up to €5,000.

“Nonetheless, the acts currently in force carry certain restrictions on the protection of the population’s deposits,” he said. “That’s why the moment has come now to adopt the decree and edict to protect the deposits of individuals and simplify the accounting system for banks. Their adoption is not caused by any emergency circumstances, and, on the other hand, will help attract deposits including those by foreign citizens.”

According to Mr. Lukashenka, Belarus’ banking sector has considerably strengthened lately, which he said enables the government to expand its guarantees offered to depositors. “At present, however hard it may be, our banking sector is much more powerful than before,” he said.

The draft presidential decree and edict were finalized with due regard for the thoughts and suggestions expressed at the conference and submitted to the president for signing, the press office said.

In mid-October, Mr. Lukashenka tasked Pyotr Prakapovich, head of the National Bank of Belarus, with drawing up a draft presidential decree that would guarantee individuals’ bank deposits of any size.

Mr. Lukashenka reportedly suggested that the decree should guarantee all money deposits of any size and provide for the acceptance of deposits of any size from both Belarusian citizens and foreigners, “with strict secrecy observed with regard to deposit accounts in accordance with Belarusian regulations.”

Mr. Lukashenka also directed the National Bank to urgently devise measures that would allow Belarus to rank among the world’s top 30 countries with the most favorable lending conditions.