Banking and Monetary System of the Republic of Belarus

The transformation of the centrally-planned economy into a market-type economy required that a finance and credit system be formed in the Republic on the basis of the transition from inherited previous mono-structure of monetary and credit institutions to two-step banking system with a clear division of functions between the central bank and commercial banks.

The first of these levels is represented by the National Bank which is the central bank of the Republic of Belarus having large powers. It is independent in its activities and is subordinate to the Parliament only.

The second level of the banking system is represented by commercial banks through which the monetary policy of Belarus is implemented.

According to the current legislation the commercial banks enjoy a high degree of independence in choosing the main spheres of their activities. As regards their form, the commercial banks may be both state-owned and non-state banks set up by founders (legal and physical persons) on a share or contribution basis.

The commercial banks of Belarus have been formed in two ways. The first way was to set up new commercial banks. On the 1st of January 1996, 40 commercial banks were registered in the Republic having universal forms of services. Out of them in 6 banks the control package is owned by founders with the state form of property, 33 banks are non-governmental.

Today the share of foreign subjects in the authorized capital of the entire banking system of Belarus does not exceed 10%. At present, in Belarus, there are banks which operate jointly with Russian capital and a bank with the Participation of Swiss and Latvian capitals; a number of subsidiaries and representations of foreign banks have been operated: KommertzBank Germany), Deposit-Credit Bank of Poland, and others. The Republic is a member of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. In February 1993 Belarus set up the Inter-Bank Currency Exchange which is the main instrument of the legal currency market.

The trades are performed in four main currencies: US dollar, Euro, Russian ruble and Ukrainian grivna. The National Bank established the official exchange rate of the Belarusian ruble in relation to the US dollar, Euro and the Russian ruble twice a week, on Tuesday and Thursday, on the basis of the auction results. The exchange rates for other currencies are set through computations using the exchange rate of the US dollar at the main currency exchanges of the world. At present the country possesses a large network of offices for the exchange of cash currency.

TRANSLATION

A. Translate into Russian.

The Paris Club

The Paris Club is an informal forum where countries experiencing difficulties in paying their debts to governments and private institutions meet with their creditors to restructure these debts. The name might be quite misleading because in reality the Paris Club is not a club, nor is it a formal international organization. It has no offices, no secretariat, and above all, no charter. The Paris Club is an ad hoc institution with no legal status.

In part, the Paris Club's confidentiality policy has prevented it from becoming known to a wider public. Creditors refrain from releasing any information pertaining to their assessment of a given debtor's economic and financial situation or to the scope of debt relief granted. The onset of the international debt crisis in the early however, brought public attention to the Paris Club and to its contribution to resolving the balance-of-payment disequilibria experienced by a growing number of developing countries and by some Central and Eastern European countries.

B. Translate into English.

Коммерческие банки могут быть универсальными или специализированными. Инвестиционные банки специализируются на кредитовании фирм; торговые банки финансируют операции на рынке капитала и внешнеторговую деятельность; сберегательные банки собирают и пускают в оборот сбережения многочисленных, главным образом, мелких вкладчиков.

Частные лица и компании открывают банковские счета, по которым проводят различные операции, например, при необходимости снимают наличные деньги либо переводят средства на счета других людей посредством выписывания чеков, прямого дебетования или электронного трансфера. При утрате доверия клиентов к банку все его вкладчики одновременно пытаются изъять из него свои деньги, что приводит к «набегу» на банк. Во избежание подобных ситуаций в большинстве стран существуют государственные органы, которые наблюдают за деятельностью банков.

В прошлом Банк Англии устанавливал банковскую ставку – специальную учетную ставку для первоклассных заемщиков. В настоящее время эта ставка отменена.