CBE Disburses Over $1 Billion in Foreign Exchange to Ease Dollar Shortage











Addis Ababa, August 10, 2025 – The Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), the country’s largest lender, announced it has released more than $1 billion in foreign currency over the past six weeks to meet surging demand from businesses and essential service providers.

Key Approvals This Month

On August 10, 2025, the bank cleared all pending customer requests, disbursing $420.4 million for trade and service needs.

Combined with allocations made between July 22 and August 9, CBE has approved $541.4 million for 1,140 customers.

Since the start of the fiscal year on July 1, 2025, total foreign exchange disbursement has reached $1.034 billion.

Priority Sectors Covered

The bank said the latest disbursements were in addition to its regular daily forex allocations for:

Fuel imports

Fertilizer procurement

Critical service payments

Why It Matters

Ethiopia continues to grapple with foreign currency shortages, a persistent challenge for importers and manufacturers. CBE’s move to clear backlogs and increase disbursement volume is aimed at:

Easing pressure on businesses reliant on imported goods

Supporting government priorities such as energy, agriculture, and infrastructure inputs

Reassuring customers that forex supply is being managed more systematically

The Road Ahead

CBE emphasized it will continue aligning its foreign exchange operations with the country’s strategic economic priorities, ensuring that businesses and essential service providers have regular access to hard currency.