# INSTRUCTION N° 004 /GR/2022
# Relating to the opening and operation of foreign currency accounts of Credit Institutions in the books of BEAC
The Governor,
Having regard to the Statutes of BEAC in force;
Having regard to Regulation No. 02/18/CEMAC/UMAC/CM of 21 December 2018 on the regulation of foreign exchange in CEMAC;
Pursuant to Article 43 of the said Regulation,
# HEREBY ISSUES THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTION:
Section 1: General provisions
Article 1. - This Instruction defines the conditions and modalities for opening and operating, in the Central Bank's books, foreign currency accounts of CEMAC Credit Institutions.
Article 2. - Credit Institutions are authorised to hold foreign currency accounts with the Central Bank in the context of their operations with the Central Bank and their relations with customers.
For the purposes of this Instruction, a foreign currency account opened in the books of the Central Bank is an account denominated in a currency other than the CFA Franc (XAF), issued by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC).
Article 3. - Credit Institutions shall open in the books of the Central Bank one account per currency, formalised by an opening and operating agreement signed by both parties.
Article 4. - The foreign currency accounts of Credit Institutions domiciled in the books of the Central Bank are intended to cover:
the foreign exchange risk generated by the foreign currency deposits of customers of Credit Institutions: the foreign currency requirements of Credit Institutions necessary to carry out ordinary operations with the outside world of customers authorised to hold foreign currency accounts in CEMAC.
Article 5 - Credit Institutions shall send electronically to the Central Services of the Central Bank in Yaoundé, Republic of Cameroon, their applications to open foreign currency accounts.
The application to open an account(s), signed by the duly authorised person(s) of the requesting Credit Institution, shall specify the desired currency(ies). It is accompanied by a summary file containing information on all foreign currency accounts held in the books of the Credit Institution, in particular the holder(s), the date of opening and the balance of the account, with a copy of the associated supporting documents.
# Section 2: Hedging of foreign exchange risk
Article 6. - Credit Institutions shall cover the foreign exchange risk in the context of the operation of foreign currency accounts opened by customers in their books, duly authorised by the Central Bank.
Article 7. - To cover the foreign exchange risk provided for in Article 6 of this Instruction, Credit Institutions shall deposit, for each currency covered by an account in their books in the name of their customers, the equivalent in the said currency of the relevant balance in the corresponding account opened in the books of the Central Bank.
For each currency, the sum of the balances of all customer accounts must at all times be equal to the balance of the Credit Institution's account in the corresponding currency with the Central Bank.