Reserves backing the Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) currency have risen to almost US$700 million, according to Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor John Mushayavanhu.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail, Mushayavanhu said the reserve pool had grown from US$276 million at the launch of ZiG on April 5, 2024, to US$683 million on May 29, 2025, enough to fully cover both the currency in circulation and all ZiG-denominated bank deposits.
This marks a major milestone, surpassing the RBZ’s original target of 100 per cent reserve backing.
The governor detailed the composition of the reserves, which include US$352 million in gold, US$258 million in cash and nostro balances, and the remainder in other reserve assets.
He said the rapid growth in reserves reflects the increasing sustainability and credibility of the new currency. Said Mushayavanhu:
In the year following the launch of the structured currency, Zimbabwe Gold, the Reserve Bank has achieved various milestones regarding the sustainability of the currency.
Notably, the foreign currency reserves backing ZiG have grown by 145 percent from US$276 million on April 5, 2024 to US$683 million on May 29, 2025.
In addition, the interbank foreign exchange market has remained stable and able to satisfy demand on the back of increased foreign currency receipts.
In this regard, the premium between the formal and parallel exchange rates remains narrow and within acceptable international benchmarks, which also buttresses the stability and predictability of ZiG.
Mushayavanhu said the continued stability of the interbank foreign exchange market, coupled with the increasing use of ZiG for transactions through the National Payment System, reflects growing public confidence in the currency. He said:
At the introduction of the structured currency, the RBZ set an initial target of maintaining a full (100 percent) reserve cover for the ZiG monetary base amounting to about ZiG1,3 billion.
At inception, this entailed backing the entire local currency component of reserve money, approximately equivalent to US$90 million, with equivalent reserve assets.
As of May 29, 2025, the total reserve money in circulation denominated in ZiG was ZiG4,723 billion, equivalent to approximately US$173 million.
This figure remains fully covered by the total reserves of US$683 million, resulting in a reserve coverage ratio well in excess of the initial 100 percent target.
The reserves also cover the entire ZiG deposits in the banking sector, which stood at ZiG16,99 billion as of May 29, 2025.
This more than 100 percent reserve coverage reinforces the Reserve Bank’s commitment to preserving the stability, integrity and credibility of ZiG as a structured currency.
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