ASFI indicates that deposits in dollars can be returned in bolivianos

Antonio, for years he has been dedicated to manufacturing clothing for personnel who work in the country’s gas and oil fields. The fabric with which he gives life to the designs that his wife carries out is imported from Brazil and on some occasions from China.

Maria Lucy, is a small businesswoman dedicated to the production of products for home cleaning and personal hygiene.

The containers and some chemical components must be imported from Colombia, Before, it made important purchases from the Spanish market, but given the increase in costs, it chose to look at South America.

In both cases The common denominator is the need to have dollars to be able to pay for the imports of the different inputs they need.

But how do they do it? Antonio maintained that A year ago he reached an agreement with the bank, where he had a Fixed Term Deposit (DPF) in dollars, where it was agreed to withdraw part of their savings in dollars and another in national currency.

“It was a long process, where, due to the current lack of dollars, the bank returned me only part in dollars and the rest in bolivianos with the official quote. Of course I lost money, this forced Bolivianization of my savings hurt me. But I had to accept and the dollars I recovered are safe and generate interest that allows me to continue importing the supplies I need,” Antonio explained.

Maria Lucy, had to reconcile and accept the conditions of his bank, “It was either recovering a part or losing all my savings in dollars. It is true that there are no dollars in the system, but if the banks were more friendly to depositors, they would look for a way to meet their obligations, but they are not, They rely on the cold letter of the rules and the one who loses is the importer or entrepreneur. that she must go abroad to buy the materials she uses in her business,” observed the businesswoman.

The norm that María Lucy refers to is the Commercial Code, which according to the Financial System Supervision Authority (ASFI), in its article 1383 “establishes that the fixed-term deposit is returnable once the agreed period has elapsed, with the sole presentation of the certificate of deposit; Likewise, in its article 795, it provides that obligations contracted in foreign currency may be returned in foreign or national currency.”.

Although there is the possibility of a conciliation with the EIF, the case of Amelia Salórzano, owner manager of Patra, It shows that sometimes such an instance is not reached, but quite the opposite.

The businesswoman regretted that the lack of will of Banco Mercantil Santa Cruz and the ASFI are causing the closure of their company, leaving some 20 direct workers and about 200 indirect workers, without their source of employment.

Salórzano explained that he got tired of asking Mercantil Santa Cruz and the ASFI to, “payment for a PDF in foreign currency is executed to be able to acquire the raw materials with which the company works”.

The businesswoman explained that they are the DPF in dollars which she could not recover and on the contrary, she assures that she was forced to sign a conciliation where only 20% of their deposits were delivered in dollars and the rest in national currency.

Given this accusation, The aforementioned banking entity ensures that this case was attended to in a timely manner and how many times it was requested.providing alternative solutions at all times.

“Based on the conciliation agreed upon by mutual consent between our institution and Ms. Solórzano, in the presence of its legal advisor and the competent authority, we clarify that the bank at all times complied in a timely manner the conciliation document signed between both parties. Unfortunately, given the lack of knowledge of the agreements reached, on the part of Mrs. Solórzano, Currently, the case has been brought to the attention of the judicial authority so that it can be resolved in accordance with the law.”, clarified Mercantil Santa Cruz.