Dollar to Hit MVR 21 on the Black Market

4 Jul 2026 - 20:54

The price of the US dollar on the Maldives’ black market, which many individuals and businesses rely on to obtain foreign currency, has climbed to a record high, approaching MVR 21 per US dollar.

According to financial analysts and foreign exchange traders, if current market conditions continue, there is a strong possibility that the black market exchange rate will reach MVR 21 sometime this month or early next month.

Over the past two days, the black market rate has ranged between MVR 20.70 and MVR 20.85 per dollar. At the end of June, the rate was around MVR 20.50, but it has risen significantly after remaining close to MVR 20 for several days, mainly due to the increasing shortage of US dollars.

Although black market rates have always been higher than the official exchange rate, the recent sharp increase comes after the government introduced changes to foreign currency regulations and laws. The government had previously stated that these reforms would not cause the value of the US dollar to rise. However, even six months after the policy changes were announced, the dollar has not fallen in value.

As the shortage of US dollars has worsened, the Bank of Maldives (BML) has also introduced higher fees for e-commerce transactions. In addition, the bank has imposed daily limits on foreign currency transactions made using Maldivian rufiyaa cards and has introduced separate spending limits for different online shopping websites.

Furthermore, BML has launched an investment scheme that allows customers to earn returns in Maldivian rufiyaa while providing access to US dollars through the bank.

According to BML, the US dollars obtained through these investments are intended for making payments on e-commerce websites. Under this scheme, the effective exchange rate is around MVR 19.30 per US dollar, which includes the return paid to investors.

Taken together, these developments indicate that the black market exchange rate is continuing to rise with little sign of control and is now moving steadily toward MVR 21 per US dollar.