Updated 06:27 AM EDT, Fri, Mar 29, 2024

Argentina Economy: Central Bank Raid Orchestrated by Opposition to Devalue Exchange Rate?

  • +
  • -
  • Sign up to receive the lastest news from LATINONE

Police have raided the Central Bank of Argentina amid allegations that it put the country's diminishing foreign-currency reserves at risk by forcefully trading derivatives.

The raid, which took place on Tuesday ordered by Federal Judge Claudio Bonadio, comes before the Argentine presidential election on Sunday, Seeking Alpha reported. Bank President Alejandro Vanoli is currently in dispute with opposition leader Mauricio Macri, who is leading in the polls ahead of Daniel Scioli of the ruling Victory Front coalition.

Tuesday's raid was part of the investigation into a criminal complaint filed by Macri, the Wall Street Journal wrote. Experts said that raids done to secure evidence are standard procedure for Argentine judges after criminal complaints are filed.

Macri's criminal complaint filed against Vanoli and the bank's directors claimed that it has breached its charter by selling dollar future contracts at rates below the market. Critics said that the policy could cause major budgetary problems for Macri if he wins the presidential seat and "fulfills his pledge to remove some forex controls and devalue the peso," Seeking Alpha wrote.

According to the Wall Street Journal, there are concerns that aside from devaluing the peso, the incoming administration will tweak foreign-exchange policies to prevent a scarcity of U.S. dollars from suffocating the economy." This issue has taken the spotlight of the election, as well as the lack of greenbacks.

Vanoli, who reportedly has close relations with the current administration, said that he would be willing to step down from his position if Macri wins the presidency and sharply devalues Argentina's currency, the Wall Street Journal noted.

Critics argued that setting artificial prices on futures contracts could pave the way for subsidizing the price of dollars and could cost the next administration billions, the Wall Street Journal further reported.

"I think it helped reduce pressure on the exchange rate, but it did so at an extraordinary cost to the country," said former Economy Minister José Luis Machinea, as quoted by the news outlet. "This is scandalous."

Vanoli and Macri's dispute soared after the trading volume of dollar futures climbed sharply in late October, when investors took the opportunity to profit from purchasing futures for just 10.6 pesos per dollar, the Wall Street Journal wrote. The market rate abroad was closer to 15 pesos.

Argentine central-bank reserves plummeted by approximately half to about $26 billion after foreign-currency controls was implemented in 2011, the news outlet noted. The next president to be sworn into office on Dec. 10 will need to act quickly to put a stop to the financial impact.

© 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
  • Sign up to receive the lastest news from LATINONE
Close

Curiosidades

Real Time Analytics