As light is slowly dawning in Yangon, depositors are already lining up anxiously outside the military-run Myawaddy Bank as a new order strictly limiting daily cash withdrawals fuels rumors of a post-coup cash shortage in Myanmar.
Dozens of military-held Myanmar businesses, including Myawaddy Bank, have faced pressure to boycott since the Feb. 1 coup by military generals that toppled democratically elected government leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Protests across the country have called on employees of banks and other institutions to respond to the strike, bringing the banking industry controlled by the military and its cronies to a standstill ahead of Myanmar’s monthly payday on the 26th.
In Yangon, a major commercial city, most private banks remained closed and only some state-run banks were open for business, but cash withdrawals from ATMs were not always possible.
Tun Naing, a 43-year-old businessman, said the uncertainty of the situation has increased the concern about the cash shortage. He has been lining up at the Myawady Bank every day for the past week to withdraw the 6 million kyat he has in his account.
Although Miwadi Bank is the sixth-largest bank in Myanmar, it limits withdrawals to 200 depositors per branch per day, and each person is limited to 500,000 kyats per day.
Tun Naing said that getting a spot early in the morning is the key to qualifying for withdrawals, and that “some people simply stay at nearby hotels so they can get in line early to get their vouchers,” but some people are not so lucky.
Myint Myint, a 64-year-old retired teacher, has been lining up at the bank every day for a week, but still can’t get his money. He said, “I’m really fed up, they should announce through the (official) media that our money is safe and secure… Even though I don’t have much savings, I’m still worried because of all the rumors.”
Htwe Htwe Thein, a Burmese national and international business expert at Curtin University in Australia, said, “We know that in the past, when the military government ruled, they printed money to solve problems, yet this must have led to Inflation.”
Myanmar was facing severe economic hardship before the coup due to the rampant 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak and the imposition of city closures, and is expected to worsen as civil servants respond to strikes due to the civil disobedience movement.
The military generals have been sanctioned by the US, UK, Canada and the EU, and the economy as a whole is at risk of reputational damage and reduced foreign direct investment.
Fitch Ratings, an international credit rating agency, immediately revised its economic growth forecast for Myanmar this year from 5.6 percent to 2 percent on the day of the coup, citing “elevated political risks.
The social movement group Justice for Myanmar has warned that the military may use $6.7 billion in foreign currency reserves as foreign funds may be temporarily suspended. So far, the U.S. sanctions include a $1 billion asset freeze.
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