BOM Publishes Several Regulatory Updates in June 2021
The Bank of Mauritius (BOM) published guidelines on the issuance of sustainable bonds, on the scope of application of Basel III and eligible capital, for the computation of debt-to-income ratio for residential property loans. Also, BOM conducted an assessment of the domestic systemically important banks (D-SIBs) in June 2021, designating five banks as systemically important: The Mauritius Commercial Bank Ltd, SBM Bank (Mauritius) Ltd, Barclays Bank Mauritius Limited (now known as Absa Bank Mauritius Limited), The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, and AfrAsia Bank Limited. The same banks had been identified as D-SIBs in the previous assessment that was conducted in January 2020. In another update, BOM has extended certain relief measures taken in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To continue to provide ongoing assistance to Mauritian businesses across all economic sectors, households, and individuals, BOM has extended, till June 30, 2022, the:
- moratorium on loans granted to economic operators, small and medium enterprises, households, and individuals impacted by COVID-19.
- Special Relief Amount facility of MUR 5.0 billion made available to banks to help meet cash flow and working capital requirements of economic operators directly impacted by COVID-19. Disbursement will continue to be effected through commercial banks and interest rate on these advances to impacted economic operators remains capped at the fixed rate of 1.5% per annum.
- reduction of the Cash Reserve Ratio applicable to commercial banks from 9% to 8% to further support banks to assist businesses that are being impacted by COVID-19.
The following are the key highlights of the recently published guidelines:
- The guideline on scope of application of Basel III and eligible capital sets out the rules text and timelines to implement some of the elements related to the strengthening of the capital framework. It also lays down the transitional arrangements for implementing certain elements of the Basel III capital framework as well as the limits and minima of the different components of capital. The revised guideline shall come into effect on June 28, 2021.
- The guideline on the computation of debt-to-income ratio for residential property loans sets out procedures to be followed by banks to determine repayment capacity of borrowers when granting credit facilities for the purchase or construction of residential properties in Mauritius. The revised guideline shall come into effect on June 17, 2021.
- The guideline on issuance of sustainable bonds in Mauritius covers the requirements and process for the issuance of sustainable bonds and for the listing of these bonds on Exchanges licensed in Mauritius while seeking to ensure the integrity of the sustainable financing ecosystem in Mauritius and to prevent greenwashing.
Related Links
- Press Release on Guideline on Sustainable Bonds
- Guideline on Sustainable Bonds (PDF)
- Guideline on Application of Basel III
- Guideline on Residential Property Loans
- Notice on COVID-19 Support Measures
- Notice on D-SIB Assessment
Keywords: Middle East and Africa, Mauritius, Banking, ESG, COVID-19, Regulatory Capital, Sustainable Bonds, D-SIBs, Credit Risk, Debt to Income Ratio, DTI, RRE, Basel, D-SIBs, Greenwashing, BOM
Featured Experts

María Cañamero
Skilled market researcher; growth strategist; successful go-to-market campaign developer

Nicolas Degruson
Works with financial institutions, regulatory experts, business analysts, product managers, and software engineers to drive regulatory solutions across the globe.

Patrycja Oleksza
Applies proficiency and knowledge to regulatory capital and reporting analysis and coordinates business and product strategies in the banking technology area
Related Articles
OSFI Discusses Benchmark Rate Transition, Sets Out Work Priorities
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) published the strategic plan for 2022-2025 and the departmental plan for 2022-23.
EBA Proposes Standards to Support Secondary NPL Markets
The European Banking Authority (EBA) is consulting, until August 31, 2022, on the draft implementing technical standards specifying requirements for the information that sellers of non-performing loans (NPLs) shall provide to prospective buyers.
EU Confirms Agreement on Rules on Cybersecurity and Banking Resolution
The European Council and the Parliament reached an agreement on the revised Directive on security of network and information systems (NIS2 Directive).
EBA Issues Standards for Crowdfunding Service Providers Under ECSPR
The European Banking Authority (EBA) published the final draft regulatory technical standards specifying information that crowdfunding service providers shall provide to investors on the calculation of credit scores and prices of crowdfunding offers.
EU to Amend Credit Risk Adjustment Rules; ESAs Submit Queries on SFDR
The European Council published a draft Commission Delegated Regulation to amend the regulatory technical standards on specification of the calculation of specific and general credit risk adjustments.
EU Confirms Agreement on Rules on Cybersecurity and Banking Resolution
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a paper that examines the systemic risk posed by increasing use of cloud services, along with the potential policy options to mitigate this risk.
MAS Amends Notice 635 and Issues Second Proposal on Green Taxonomy
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) published amendments to Notice 635, which sets out requirements that a bank in Singapore has to comply with when granting an unsecured non-card credit facility to individuals.
EC Consults on PSD2 and Open Finance; EU Reaches Agreement on DORA
The European Commission (EC) published a public consultation on the review of revised payment services directive (PSD2) and open finance.
EC Mandates ESAs to Propose Amendments to SFDR Technical Standards
The European Commission (EC) has issued two letters mandating the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) to jointly propose amendments to the regulatory technical standards under Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation or SFDR.
EBA Examines Supervisory Practices, Issues Deposits Reporting Template
The European Banking Authority (EBA) published its annual report on convergence of supervisory practices for 2021. Additionally, following a request from the European Commission (EC),