2025-03-04 | RESOLUCIONES DE DIRECTORIO N° 025/2025Added · Updated
The Central Bank of Bolivia amends Articles 15 and 19 of the Regulation on Gold Purchases in the Internal Market to authorize forward gold sales, allowing sellers to request an advance payment of up to 50% of the gold's value guaranteed by specific instruments, and increases the minimum gold purity threshold for acquisition to 75%. These changes apply to all legally established and authorized public and private entities participating in gold commercialization with the Bank. The resolution enters into force upon publication.
That Article 327 of the Political Constitution of the State determines that the Central Bank
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of Bolivia is a public law institution, with legal personality and its own assets, which, within the framework of the State's economic policy, has the function of maintaining the stability of the internal purchasing power of the currency, to contribute to economic and social development.
That numeral 5 of Paragraph I of Article 328 of the Political Constitution of the State establishes that it is an attribution of the BCB, in coordination with the economic policy determined by the Executive Branch, to administer the International Reserves.
That Article 1 of Law No. 1670, modified by Article 64, section A3, numeral 1) of Law No. 1864 of June 15, 1998 on Property and Popular Credit, establishes that the BCB is a State institution, of public law, autarkic in nature, of indefinite duration, with legal personality and its own assets and with legal domicile in the city of La Paz. It is the sole monetary and exchange authority of the country, with administrative, technical and financial competence and specialized regulatory powers of general application.
That Articles 14 and 15 of Law No. 1670 establish that the BCB will ensure the strengthening of the International Reserves so as to allow the normal functioning of Bolivia's international payments and these reserves are constituted by one or more of the assets, among which is physical gold.
That Article 44 of Law No. 1670 establishes that the highest authority of the BCB is its Board of Directors, which is responsible for defining its policies, specialized regulations of general application and internal rules.
That subsections a), c) and o) of Article 54 of Law No. 1670 indicate as attributions of the Board of Directors the following: issue the rules and adopt the general decisions that may be necessary for the BCB to fulfill the functions, competencies and powers assigned to it by the Law, monitor the execution of monetary, exchange, credit, financial intermediation, and international reserves administration policies and regulations, and approve, modify and interpret the Statute and Regulations of the BCB, by two-thirds of the votes of all its members, without the need for any additional administrative act.
That Article 1 of Law No. 1503 has the object of authorizing the BCB to Purchase Gold
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from the Internal Market to Strengthen International Reserves and to carry out financial operations with International Reserves in gold in international markets.
That Article 2 of Law No. 1503 states that individuals and legal entities, public and private, legally established, registered and authorized by competent entities, who participate in the commercialization of gold, are within the scope of application of the Law.
That Article 4 of Law No. 1503 provides that for the Purchase of Gold in the Internal Market, the BCB will pay in national currency, taking as a basis the price of the international gold quotation, under competitive conditions, in accordance with regulations issued by the Issuing Entity.
That Article 5 of Law No. 1503 provides that the BCB will establish the conditions, characteristics, periodicity, limits and procedures for the acquisition of gold from the internal market, in accordance with regulations.
That the Sole Final Provision of Law No. 1503 determines that within the framework of Articles 327 and 328 of the Political Constitution of the State, the BCB, with the objective of complying with its constitutional mandate, is empowered to apply what is provided in Law No. 1670, of October 31, 1995 on the BCB and its modifications, being this sufficient for the development of its functions, without requiring further provisions than said Law.
That numerals 1) and 3) of Article 5 of the Statute of the BCB provide that its Board of Directors has regulatory competence to issue specialized rules in the fields assigned by Law and technical competence for the formulation of policies and the application of instruments that allow it to fulfill its purpose.
That Articles 6 and numerals 1), 6) and 30) of Article 10 of the Statute of the BCB provide that the Board of Directors has the attributions to approve general decisions and issue the rules that may be necessary for the BCB to fulfill the functions, competencies and powers assigned to it by the Law, approve the policy and rules for the administration of International Reserves, as well as monitor their execution, approve, modify and interpret the Statute and Regulations of the BCB, by two-thirds of the votes of all its members, without the need for an additional administrative act.
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That Paragraph I of Article 24 of the Statute of the BCB provides that the Resolutions and decisions of the Board of Directors are adopted by a simple majority of votes of its members present in a meeting, except in cases where Law No. 1670 or this Statute require qualified majorities.
That Paragraphs I and II of Article 26 of the Statute of the BCB stipulate that the Board of Directors pronounces itself on matters within its competence through Resolutions. It may also do so through decisions that will be expressly recorded in the Minutes. Likewise, every draft Board Resolution must be motivated and justified by a technical report from the Management or Managements to which the matter subject to the Resolution corresponds and by a report from the GAL. These reports must be sent to the Board of Directors by the General Management with its recommendation.
That Articles 9 and 11 of the Regulation for the Administration of International Reserves establish that International Reserves are composed of International Monetary Reserves, Gold Reserves and SDR Holdings and that Gold Reserves are constituted by physical gold in BCB vaults, investments in time deposits in this metal and balances in gold accounts abroad.
That Articles 2 and 3 of the Regulation on Gold Purchases in the Internal Market Destined to Strengthen International Reserves, within the framework of Law No. 1503 of May 5, 2023, provide that their scope of application includes all individuals and legal entities legally established, registered and authorized by competent entities that voluntarily participate in the commercialization of Gold to the BCB, the purpose of the Regulation being to regulate and establish the mechanisms and formalities for the Purchase of Gold within the internal market destined to strengthen International Reserves and to define the requirements to commercialize gold with the BCB.
That the report BCB-GOI-SRES-DOI-INF-2025-20 from GOI concludes that the proposed modifications of Articles 15 and 19 of the Regulation on Gold Purchases in the Internal Market Destined to Strengthen International Reserves, within the framework of Law No. 1503 are considered technically viable, therefore recommending to the Board of Directors of the BCB their approval.
That the report BCB-GAL-SANO-DLBCI-INF-2025-62 concludes that in accordance with report BCB-GOI-SRES-DOI-INF-2025-20 the proposal to modify Articles 15 and 19 of the Regulation on Gold Purchases in the Internal Market Destined to
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Strengthen International Reserves, within the framework of Law No. 1503 of May 5, 2023, whose object is to incorporate the figure of forward sale, establishing the conditions for its request for gold sale to the BCB and improving the quality of gold that the BCB purchases by increasing the purity limit of gold to 75%, is legally viable for approval by the Board of Directors of the BCB.
"ARTICLE 15.- (REQUEST FOR THE SALE OF GOLD - PRIVATE AND PUBLIC LEGAL ENTITIES).
I. Private legal entities, registered as gold sellers to the BCB, will send their sale request through formal communication channels (institutional email, official note or others accepted by the BCB).
The BCB will review the sale requests in accordance with the requirements established in Annex III, which has the character of a Sworn Declaration by the seller.
In the event that there are no observations (information indicated in points 1 and 2 of Annex III), the Issuing Entity will communicate to the seller the fulfillment of the requirements of the Gold Sale Request Form and inform the confirmation regarding the logistics for the physical delivery of the gold and subsequent smelting.
II. Additionally, the seller may propose a forward sale and request up to 50% (Fifty percent) of the value of the quantity of gold to be sold. The forward sale proposal may not exceed the average of the last two (2) completed gold sale commitments by the seller.
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The proposed quantity of forward sale must be guaranteed through one or more of the following instruments:
a) First-demand guarantee letter. b) First-demand guarantee. c) First-demand guarantee policy. d) Mortgage guarantee on real or movable property subject to registration. e) BCB bonds.
The proposed guarantee must cover 100% of the amount of the advance requested and the fulfillment of all formalities for the issuance and/or registration of the guarantee granted, prior to the disbursement of the advance.
The mortgage guarantee or BCB bonds may be granted by the seller or by a third party, who will be jointly and severally liable in case of non-compliance.
In the event that the forward sale proposal meets the conditions established in this Regulation, the President of the BCB will sign the corresponding forward sale contract, being able to delegate or grant powers for this faculty.
Subsequently, the requested advance will be disbursed and the seller must deliver the gold within a maximum period of 8 (eight) business days computable from said disbursement.
If there are observations, the BCB will communicate them to the gold seller so that they can be remedied.
III. Public legal entities, registered as gold sellers to the BCB, will send their sale request through formal communication channels (institutional email, official note or others accepted by the BCB). The BCB will review the sale requests in accordance with the requirements established in Annex III.
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In the event that there are no observations, the International Operations Management and the Legal Affairs Management, through General Management, will present to the BCB Board of Directors the technical and legal reports, which contain the proposal of conditions for the acquisition of gold and the request for authorization to sign a contract, with the Public Legal Entity.
The BCB Board of Directors will approve by Minutes, the conditions for the acquisition of gold and the authorization to the President of the BCB to sign a Contract with the Public Legal Entity.
If there are observations, the BCB will communicate them to the gold seller so that they can be remedied."
"ARTICLE 19.- (GOLD PURITY LIMIT).
The BCB will acquire gold from private or public individuals and legal entities, with a percentage not less than 75%."
La Paz, February 25, 2025
SIGNED. ROGER EDWIN ROJAS ULO, Gumercindo Héctor Pino Guzmán, Miguel Angel Marañón Urquidi, Victor Gonzalo Calisaya Gomez.
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