PDF: RBZ foreign currency auctions for the first quarter of 2022

The RBZ has published the latest list for this year’s first quarter of 2022. The top beneficiary of the auction was Blue Ribbon which managed to get US$1 998 702 which is about 2% of all the monies allotted. With a total of 2.4 billion USD allotted through the auction. Here is the thing though, Allotment and actually getting the money have proven to be two totally different things. The biggest complaint against the auction is that some have won bids and gone months without ever receiving the payment. They end up incurring expensive interest rates that make the black market cheaper. Anyway here are some stats from the auction:

“1. A list of the 749 beneficiaries of US$107 801 206 allotted under the Main Foreign Exchange Auction during the month of April 2022;

2. A list of the 2 142 beneficiaries of US$17 850 257 allotted under the SMEs Foreign Exchange Auction during the month of April 2022; and
3. A schedule showing the total foreign exchange payments for the period January 2022 to April 2022, by source, amounting to US$2 440 874 016 broken down as follows: –
   (i) foreign currency accounts (US$1 854 284 195),
   (ii) Foreign Exchange Auction Allotments (US$528 126 996); and
   (iii) the interbank market (US$58 462 825).”

“The bulk of the auction allotments during the month of April 2022 (68%) was for payment for raw materials (US$55 369 119) and machinery and equipment (US$30 688 074), with the remaining 32% of the total allotments going towards payment for retail and distribution (US$10 713 036), consumables (US$10 366 460), services (US$9 133 409), pharmaceuticals and chemicals (US$5 574 526), packaging (US$3 617 236) and fuel, electricity and gas (US$189 604), as shown in the tables below.
Total cumulative foreign exchange auction allotments since inception of the Foreign Exchange Auction System stand at US$3 124 507 809.”

The top 50 beneficiaries were as follows: