ASEAN-plus-3 nations discuss currency swap policy, financial cooperation

All News 11:20 December 08, 2023

SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Yonhap) -- Vice finance ministers of South Korea, China, Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed to improve a currency swap mechanism as part of efforts to boost overall financial cooperation, Seoul's finance ministry said Friday.

The consensus was reached during the two-day regular meeting of the vice ministers, as well as senior representatives from their central banks, held in the Japanese city of Kanazawa from Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

The officials decided to push for launching the Rapid Financing Facility (RFF) under their Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM) agreement, which provides prompt financial assistance to its members facing an urgent balance of payments need.

The envisioned RFF is expected to be approved during a ministerial meeting next year, the ministry said.

Launched in 2010, the CMIM is a multilateral currency swap arrangement among the ASEAN+3 nations, which aims to give liquidity to member nations in times of financial crisis. The pool amounts to US$240 billion, with South Korea contributing $38.4 billion.