Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

After the ethnic leaders failed to agree on a new currency, the UN introduced in 1998 a

new currency, the

Exchange rates: Bosnia

marka per US$1

Jan 2001 2.086

2000 2.124

1999 1.837

1998 1.760

1997 1.734

1996 0.015

SOURCE: CIA World Factbook 2001 [ONLINE].

convertible mark. The convertible mark was fixed to the German mark. It gained acceptance,

and the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina increased its reserves. Yugoslav dinars still

circulate in the Serb Republic, and the Croatian kuna is used in the Croat areas of the Federation.

The government is still hoping to increase its capitalization by pressing for the privatization

of the numerous small commercial banks. Raiffeisen Zentralbank Oesterreich, an Aus

trian bank,

recently acquired many banks, including the Market Banka. The Austrian bank has also submitted

privatization papers to the government bank privatization unit. It is not clear whether this will

attract foreign attention, because the banking sector is weak and the economy is being reconstructed

slowly.