In Morocco, an EU directive regarding banks operating on its territory is of great concern to Moroccan authorities. This measure risks having a direct and strong impact on money transfers made morocco From abroad (MRE) from Europe to Morocco.
The flow of MRE transfers allows Morocco to build its foreign exchange assets and strengthen its ability to finance its imports. These transfers also benefit the Moroccan economy and local banks. In 2023, these transfers were to reach 115.3 billion Moroccan dirhams, or approximately 11 billion euros.
Threat of MRE fund transfer, Moroccan officials worried
A decline in these transfers would therefore punish the Moroccan economy as a whole. And this is likely to happen. And for good reason: the European Parliament recently adopted a directive aimed at blocking the activity of certain foreign banks operating in the EU territory.
The law, developed by the Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Association (FISMA) under the European Commission, is of great concern to Moroccan banks and authorities.
This was stated by Wali Abdellatif Jouhari of Bank al-Maghrib (Governor of the Central Bank of Morocco) during a press conference held on September 24. For him, ” the stakes are high », reports information site Le 360.
The media reminds that Moroccan banks have subsidiaries and branches in seven European countries. They also have dozens of representative offices in the European Union.
The main services offered by these Moroccan banking institutions to MREs living in Europe relate to account opening and management as well as money transfers. These activities can be banned.
It should therefore block the flow of transfers from Morocco abroad moroccoBecause a very large part of this financial windfall is transferred through these banking institutions.
The rise of the far right in Europe risks complicating talks
To protect this financial windfall from the impact of the European directive, the Moroccan authorities and the banks concerned have initiated very close dialogue with various stakeholders in the EU, as indicated by BAM’s Wali.
However, he says the problem risks becoming more complicated, as some EU countries already ban the activity of Moroccan banks’ subsidiaries on their soil. Furthermore, the rise of the far right in Europe risks worsening the situation, which will make negotiations difficult.
In 2023, remittances from MRE reached a record high of 115.3 billion dirhams, an increase of 4.1% year-on-year. According to data published by Morocco’s foreign exchange office, during this period, the leading source country of these revenues was France.
Moroccans living in France actually transferred 30.8% of the total amount of money sent by the MRE in 2023. France is followed by Spain (12.6%), Saudi Arabia (10.7%) and Italy (9.2%).
During the first seven months of the current year, transfers reached 68.13 billion dirhams, 3.3% higher than the same period last year, thus confirming the upward trend.