Money changers negotiate new arrangement at border
Last week the government announced that as of Monday July eleventh, the money changing houses, known as casas de cambio, would close. The idea was to plug what was believed to be a very large leak of uncontrolled foreign exchange. The question that immediately arose was how would Belizean shoppers convert their money into pesos and quetzales at the northern and western borders. Today I travelled north and found that in good Belizean fashion, the situation was working itself out.
Janelle Chanona, Reporting
Today it was business as usual for money changers at the Santa Elena border in the Corozal District. And according to their association, with authorisation from the Government of Belize, that?s the way things will stay until ongoing talks with the banking community are concluded.
Andreas Cowo, President, Pesero Association
?We no have nothing right now. We are working, we noh have no problem, till tomorrow because we are negotiating with the Central Banks and the bankers and tomorrow we are going to get the decision.?
Following the decision of the Musa administration to close down the Casas de Cambio throughout the country this week, speculation was that the move would cripple the peseros hustling at the borders, as only G.O.B., the banks and Belize Global Travel Services are legally allowed to conduct foreign currency transactions.
The Belize Bank was the first to react to the decision, opening a booth inside the main departure terminal this week to change Belize and U.S. dollars to Mexican pesos.
Andreas Cowo
?We are trying to solve this with the bankers, that we have Belize Bank right here and that is not creating a problem for us, because the police have no confrontation with us, is not molesting us, so we noh have no problem.?
Janelle Chanona
?So what exactly is the issue you?re trying to negotiate then??
Andreas Cowo
?To stay here, to be here or to be agents for the bank, that?s all; working in the law.?
Janelle Chanona
?What is the worse case scenario at this point??
Issac Sajia, Money-Changer
?To make them remove us from here; that?s the worse case. But up to right now, we no have no problem; we got the go-ahead from government.?
Janelle Chanona
?You got that by letter??
Issac Sajia
?No, just verbally. But they are still negotiating with the Central Bank and the other banks.?
Janelle Chanona
?And you all would be agents for each of the banks or one bank??
Issac Sajia
?We don?t know that as yet, that?s still on the table.?
With their negotiation team made up of Area Representative Vildo Marin, P.U.P. political hopeful Florencio Marin Jr., and free zone businessman Winston Smiling, tonight the peseros are optimistic things will swing in their favour.
Tonight News Five understands there are approximately forty-five full time Belizean money changers operating at the Santa Elena border…called peseros because they deal primarily with Mexican pesos. The money changers make a living by charging a commission on the currency exchange.
According to immigration officials, during this time of the year, there are approximately four thousand people using the northern border point, but most of them are employees headed to the Corozal Free Zone.
Today as we stood on the sidelines, the tradition of doing business with the peseros was going strong as those headed into Mexico, walked pass the Belize Bank counter and changed their dollars for pesos outside.
When we did our own transaction, the peseros rate was five zero six, while that same amount inside was traded at five zero five. But it is believed that if or when an agreement is made between the banks and the peseros, those rates will be synchronised.
