Finance Minister Moosa Zameer stated today that MVR 163 million has been released to businesses through banks from last March until today to resolve the difficulties faced by businesses due to the ongoing war in the Middle East.

Speaking at a press conference held by the Crisis Committee formed by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, which includes several ministers, Zameer said that as businesses face challenges due to the Middle East war, discussions are being held with the country's largest bank, Bank of Maldives (BML), as well as other banks to find solutions to these difficulties.

"In providing relief, we are looking into discussing with Bank of Maldives and other banks to release funds for additional working capital and other financing needs to resolve the immediate difficulties faced by businesses," he said.

The Minister stated that while those funds were released to banks, MVR 540 million in loans were released to tourism businesses and MVR 940 million to the construction sector during the first quarter of this year.

According to Zameer, the government is giving special priority to facilitating businesses as much as possible during the wartime situation. In that regard, he noted that they are also finding ways to make dollars more easily available for conducting foreign transactions.

He said that the amount released to banks in the first quarter of this year is several times higher compared to the same period last year. While an average of USD 5.6 million was sold in the first quarter of last year, USD 106 million has been sold this year. Zameer stated that while USD 26 million was released for card settlements last year, USD 40 million has been released for that purpose this year.

"We are doing everything possible through our national bank by intervening on behalf of the government to keep the economy from stalling," he said.