Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan

Template:Infobox Central bank

The Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་རྒྱལ་གཞུང་དངུལ་ལས་དབང་འཛིན་) serves as the central bank of Bhutan and is a member of the Asian Clearing Union. It also holds the authority for minting the Bhutanese Ngultrum. The Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan was established under the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan Act of 1982. This Act was subsequently amended by the Financial Institutions Act of 1992 and was entirely replaced by the Royal Monetary Authority Act of 2010.

History

The Royal Monetary Authority was established in 1982. In the following year, it took on the responsibilities of issuing Bhutanese currency, managing external reserves, and operating foreign exchange transactions. By 1988, the Authority had assumed the role of government banker, holding the majority of government deposits and providing financing. The passage of the Financial Institutions Act of 1992 expanded the substantive framework of the Authority to include the licensure, regulation, and inspection of financial institutions in Bhutan. The Constitution of 2008 specifically authorises the government to manage public finance and the monetary system, thereby affirming previous laws. Public finance is supported by the Consolidated Fund, while oversight of the monetary system falls under the jurisdiction of the Central Bank.