Morocco: Bill regulating crypto assets in the pipeline

Morocco is drafting a bill to regulate crypto assets in line with the recommendations made during the last G20 Summit, Governor of the central bank “Bank Al-Maghrib”, Abdellatif Jouahri, said Tuesday in Rabat.

“The main objective of this legislation is to align Moroccan regulations with international standards concerning crypto assets according to a rigorous approach, in order to protect investors and guarantee the stability of the financial system,” Jouahri underlined at a press briefing following the fourth and final quarterly meeting of the BAM Board for 2023.

Jouahri noted that BAM is actively progressing in its projects relating to the National Currency of the Central Bank (MNBC), and that a working group, in close collaboration with technical experts and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is dedicated to this project.

A recent report on MNBC, currently being analyzed by BAM, focuses on the potential use of this currency to promote financial inclusion which is crucial for developing countries, Jouahri said, pointing out that MNBC could play an important role in improving traceability and reducing transaction costs and times.

Jouahri also said that Morocco was considering the next step in the dirham currency reform to allow for a greater fluctuation against the Euro and the Dollar and that the bank plans to use 8% of its hard currency reserve to finance green projects. In 2024 and 2025, foreign exchange reserves would cover 5 months and 16 days of imports.
During the meeting, the central bank decided to keep its key rate unchanged at 3% in a context of easing inflation and improved growth rate.