Second ACU board of directors meeting held in Dhaka

The 52nd Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Asian Clearing Union (ACU) was recently held in Dhaka city.

The meeting took place at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel on Thursday, according to a press release.

Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder, also chairman of the ACU for the year 2024, presided over the meeting. 

Governors of Bangladesh Bank, Nepal Rastra Bank, Vice Governor of Central Bank of Iran, First Deputy Chairman of National Bank of the Republic of Belarus, Assistant Governor of Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Assistant Governor of Maldives Monetary Authority and Executive Director of Reserve Bank of India attended the meeting in person. Besides, the Governor of Central Bank of Myanmar and Deputy Governor of State Bank of Pakistan also attended the meeting using a virtual platform. The Secretary General of the ACU Secretariat, based in Tehran, was also present in the meeting.

In the introductory speech, Dr Mohsen Karimi, Vice Governor of the Central Bank of Iran (on behalf of Mohammad Reza Farzin), expressed heartfelt thanks to the new Chairman of ACU for the hospitality and excellent arrangements. He also wished the current chairman would make this platform more vibrant and attract more countries to join the mechanism.

At the beginning of the meeting, Mr Talukder extended his deepest condolences to the government and people of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the tragic loss of their President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other dignified officials in a recent helicopter crash.

"While reflecting upon this irreparable loss, let us reaffirm bolstering our objectives of ACU," he said.

Mr Talukder in his welcome address expressed his sincere thanks and gratitude to his predecessor, the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran for his valuable contributions towards advancing the objectives of ACU.

He pointed out that, besides its core function of ACU intra-regional trade payment settlements in minimising the involvement of external currencies, the ACU is also a useful platform for networking and experience sharing on issues of topical interest, including macroeconomic, financial, and trade policies.

He also mentioned that in recent years, the economic growth of this region has been consistently growing despite the challenges of the post-COVID-19 pandemic and global geopolitical tensions. ACU intra-regional trade is also growing much faster than global trade growth. The recent addition of countries like Belarus and Mauritius will not only increase trade settlements but also signify this region's heightening stature as a global growth hub. Inclusive approaches and a continuous search for expanding clearing boundaries will increase trade settlements and ease pressure on the Foreign Exchange Reserve Management, he added.