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Abstract
In Southeast Europe the use of foreign currency in general and euro in
particular is widespreaded phenomen that is also referred as euroization. The term
euroization referres to de facto or de iure use of the euro as legal tender, medium of
exchange, unit of account and store value instead of the domestic (local) currency.
There are several reasons for euroization, but the main is the erosion of confidence
in national currency owing to the economic and political situation.
The foreign currency (FX) indexation (valuation) clause is the stipulation in
the contract (commercial or financial) that ties the nominal value of monethary
obligation that has to be paid in one currency (currency of settlement) to another
currency (currency of valuation). First currency is uslualy the domestic (weak)
currency and the another currency is foreign (hard) currency, mainly U.S. dollar or
euro.
The inheret risks associated with FX indexed lending, and use of euro as unit
of account for the loan obliagations, has been underestimated and neglected by
banks an borrowers. The weakening of dinar against the euro led to significant
increase of real costs of unhedged FX indexed borrowings and higher credit defalut
risk for banks. The current high level of euroization in Srbia is also posing a severe
challenge to active monethary policy. Therefore, de-euroization is essential
prerequisite to improving the stability of the monethary and financial system in
Serbia.