On June 10, just four days before Parliament was dissolved, Rwanda gazetted a new law governing banks, further cementing its position as a global financial hub. The new law, which replaced its 2017 predecessor, strengthens supervision and accountability, building greater trust among all stakeholders. It is well-timed as Rwanda embraces rapid advancements in financial technology and seizes the opportunity to explicitly integrate Environmental, Social and Governance principles.
Speaking of the current times, amidst rapid digitization with exacerbated vulnerabilities to cybercrimes, as well as the pressing global issue of climate change, the bank's risk management framework now explicitly includes cybersecurity and climate-related financial risks. Ultimately, these risks can no longer be classified under the vague category of"any other risk that a bank considers possible," which might suggest they are of lesser concern.
This law further mandates banks to maintain comprehensive and chronologically organized transaction records for at least ten years. Then, financial statements, which were usually drawn and submitted only on an annual basis, can now be requested at any time for periods shorter than a year. This change is anticipated to enhance transparency and long-term data availability.
Now, the liquidator can directly refer bank insolvency matters to judicial organs. Only the Central Bank had this authority, and the liquidator could only request the regulator to initiate court proceedings. Throughout the liquidation processes, this law extends the deadline for submission of claims from 30 days to 180 days, allowing more time for claimants, despite the risk of delaying the process.There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later.