Story by Owen Mandovha, Business Reporter
OVER 38 000 units of the Mosi oa Tunya gold coins have been bought as the market embraces the instrument of store of value, introduced by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) last year.
The RBZ introduced gold coins 18 months ago as a store of value in the wake of rampant speculative trading of the Zimbabwe dollar which triggered a runaway exchange rate with negative ramifications on price stability.
In his speech at the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) 2023 Business Review Conference in Harare Thursday, RBZ Governor, Dr John Mangudya revealed that the introduction of gold coins have been largely successful with over 38 000 units having been purchased by individuals and corporates so far.
“We are quite impressed by the performance of the gold coins since their introduction last year and they have performed their ideal role as a store of value, hence to date over 38000 units have been sold. The gold coins are not in a way a currency but simply a medium of exchange when purchasing goods and services. To date about 410,77 kilogrammes worth of the digital coins,” he said.
The release of Mosi oa Tunya gold coins was followed by another key intervention to stabilise the local currency and in October, monetary authorities released a RBZ gold backed digital tokens commonly known as ZiG which have also been embraced in the market.
To date, the cumulative digital tokens purchased are at 410.76 kilogrammes.
Among other monetary measures such as maintaining a tight policy framework, the RBZ has reiterated its stance to safeguard the value of the Zimbabwean dollar, citing it as fundamental in establishing a strong macro-economic framework.
