Exchange Companies on Friday decided to sell dollar only for travel, education and medical purposes on presentation of evidence. Malik Muhammad Bostan President FAP told Business Recorder that association has decided to sell the dollar only for travel (including Hajj and Umrah), education and medical purposes to reduce the demand in free market.
He said that presently, dollar demand in open currency market is about 7-8 million per day as against the supply of 4-5 million. Therefore, after a detailed meeting with State Bank, on Friday, the association decided to take some concrete measures to curtail the demand of greenback in open currency market, he added.
Bostan said that with immediate effect dollar will be sold to genuine buyers only on presentation of evidence, confirming the purpose of buying. "Exchange companies have decided not to sell greenback to those customers who fail to provide a plausible reason for purchase," he added. He said that companies have also decided to obtained copies of CNICs for purchase of even one dollar to keep the buyers' record and discourage speculation.
The State Bank has also asked exchange companies to ensure sufficient supply of dollar to meet the public demand, he added. "We should follow the Turkey and Malaysia models as both countries invested in their local currencies and now the both countries are among emerging economies," he added.