Global customs guarantees

On 26 February 1999, the CNB Banking Supervision Department released official information regarding the provision of global guarantees for customs debt. These guarantees, issued in compliance with the corresponding Ministry of Finance Decree, do not facilitate the quantification of the risk which the banks take through the provision of these guarantees. Therefore, the Banking Supervision Department considers the provision of these guarantees to be imprudent and has recommended to the banks that the relations ensuing from them be terminated by 30 June 1999. The CNB's official information was released after discussions with the General Customs Directorate and after a promise was made that an amendment to the relevant Decree of the Ministry of Finance would enter into force on the same date at the latest. This amendment will stipulate new binding forms of guarantee certificates and will enable banks to provide these guarantees in compliance with prudential principles. The amendment to the Decree is only now going through the interdepartmental comments procedure and will enter into force on 1 July 1999.

To enable the banks to cancel the current guarantees smoothly and to substitute them with new ones in compliance with the annexes to the amended Decree (which should now meet regulator's requirements), the CNB is extending the deadline set by the official information of 26 February 1999 by two months, ie until 31 August 1999, by which time the banks should have these operations administratively completed. With this measure, the conditions have been created for sustaining the continuity of the global customs guarantees provided by banks as an important instrument for the support of import and similar transactions.

Public Relations Division