The Central Bank (BC) begins to receive voluntary deposits from financial institutions as of today (7), against remuneration. Deposits will be used for monetary policy purposes, functioning as an alternative to repo operations (government bonds).
According to the BC, voluntary deposits will serve to manage the amount of currency in circulation in the financial system and control the short-term interest rate, without impacting the public debt.
The measure expands the use of the instrument, previously restricted only to financial institutions operating in the open and foreign exchange markets. Now, the autarchy also starts to receive voluntary deposits from financial institutions that hold a Bank Reserve account (commercial banks, savings banks and multiple banks with commercial portfolios) or a Settlement Account.
Currently, the BC manages the amount of currency in the banking system through repo operations, the sale of government bonds with a repurchase commitment. As these bonds are issued by the National Treasury, they are accounted for in the country’s gross debt.
With the mechanism, financial institutions will be able to make deposits of funds in the BC, voluntarily, for a predetermined period and receiving a remuneration rate on the amount invested. This remuneration is not added to the public debt.
