Debate in Tunisia over Role of Currency Exchange against Black Market

A shopkeeper counts money in of his shop at a bazar in Tunis, Tunisia. (Reuters file photo)
A shopkeeper counts money in of his shop at a bazar in Tunis, Tunisia. (Reuters file photo)
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Debate in Tunisia over Role of Currency Exchange against Black Market

A shopkeeper counts money in of his shop at a bazar in Tunis, Tunisia. (Reuters file photo)
A shopkeeper counts money in of his shop at a bazar in Tunis, Tunisia. (Reuters file photo)

The Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT) has allowed foreign exchange activities outside the banking system, in favor of a group of licensed manual exchange offices. This has allowed financial activities to develop and evolve over the past months, reaching about 25 offices, up from seven in June.

BCT Governor Marouane Abassi confirmed that the bank has approved 45 applications to open exchange offices since the beginning of the year, which is expected to contribute to increasing the number of those offices that work in coordination with the Central Bank and the rest of the banking system.

Abbasi hopes this will curb illegal and speculative activities that are part of illegal financial operations, such as in the black market.

There are currently six exchange offices in Tunis, six in Sousse and three in each of Nabeul, Mahdia and Madania.

Legally, exchange offices are bound to the BCT, which determines the conditions for obtaining their licenses and the reasons for revoking their authorization in case of breaches.

Anyone wishing to engage in manual exchange is required to provide a bank guarantee of about $17,000 to the central bank.

The bank confirmed that licensed manual exchange offices will contribute to the legalization of currency purchase, which will limit illegal means of buying and selling currencies in Tunisia.

At least $1 billion is traded outside the banking system, leading to enormous economic damage resulting from the decline in domestic reserve of foreign currencies and banks losing a significant financial commission from various exchange operations, according to official statistics.

Some experts are skeptical about the effectiveness of these offices in reducing the phenomenon of illegal speculation in hard currency.

However, others believe that the results are beginning to emerge, as Tunisia's foreign exchange reserves have risen to around 95 supply days, after hitting a low of 73 during in early 2019.



Air France-KLM to Take Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airline SAS

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on July 04, 2025 shows a Scandinavian airline SAS plane flying over Heathrow airport on the outskirts of London on January 15, 2024 (top) and an Air France-KLM plane taking off from Tegel 'Otto Lilienthal' Airport in Berlin on November 8, 2020. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS and Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on July 04, 2025 shows a Scandinavian airline SAS plane flying over Heathrow airport on the outskirts of London on January 15, 2024 (top) and an Air France-KLM plane taking off from Tegel 'Otto Lilienthal' Airport in Berlin on November 8, 2020. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS and Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
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Air France-KLM to Take Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airline SAS

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on July 04, 2025 shows a Scandinavian airline SAS plane flying over Heathrow airport on the outskirts of London on January 15, 2024 (top) and an Air France-KLM plane taking off from Tegel 'Otto Lilienthal' Airport in Berlin on November 8, 2020. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS and Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on July 04, 2025 shows a Scandinavian airline SAS plane flying over Heathrow airport on the outskirts of London on January 15, 2024 (top) and an Air France-KLM plane taking off from Tegel 'Otto Lilienthal' Airport in Berlin on November 8, 2020. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS and Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)

Air France-KLM plans to increase its stake in Scandinavian airline SAS to 60.5%, the latest step towards consolidating Europe's fragmented airline sector as carriers seek to strengthen their position against rivals.

The Franco-Dutch airline group said on Friday it intended to increase its stake from 19.9% currently by acquiring the stakes held by top shareholders Castlelake and Lind Invest.

The purchase, subject to regulatory clearances, is expected to close in the second half of 2026, Reuters quoted Air France-KLM as saying.

The value of the investment would be determined at closing, based on SAS's latest financial performance, including core earnings (EBITDA) and net debt, the company said. It declined to give details on those metrics.

Air France-KLM expects to generate "three-digit million" euros in synergies from raising its SAS stake, Air France-KLM finance chief Steven Zaat told analysts on a call.

Zaat said the deal would be funded from cash or a "plain vanilla bond" and would not impact the drive to reduce the group's hybrid debt. "We have ample room for it," he said.

Air France-KLM shares were flat in early trading.

JPMorgan analysts said there were reasons to be positive about the deal.

"SAS offers deeper access to a GDP-rich region in Scandinavia, there will now be an opportunity to unlock cost synergies as SAS becomes a subsidiary of the group," they said in a note, adding that "industry consolidation should also be viewed positively for the whole sector, even if not game-changing in terms of size."

INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATION

SAS welcomed Air France-KLM's announcement.

"European consolidation had to happen further, and we're very happy to be part of that," SAS CEO Anko van der Werff told Danish broadcaster TV2.

"In the current setup where Air France-KLM is a 19.9% shareholder, they're still a competitor," he said. "With the new stake, going above 50%, we can really tap into all of those synergies and offer those benefits to customers."

SAS said it would continue to invest in its fleet and network.

In 2023, Air France-KLM said it would invest about $144.5 million for its initial SAS stake, boosting its presence in Sweden, Denmark and Norway with the option to become a controlling shareholder after a minimum of two years, subject to conditions.

SAS exited from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August last year.

The two carriers have already had a commercial cooperation since summer 2024. Control of SAS would allow Air France-KLM to expand in the Scandinavian market and create additional value for shareholders, Air France-KLM said in a statement.

"Following their successful restructuring, SAS has delivered impressive performance, and we are confident that the airline's potential will continue to grow through deeper integration within the Air France-KLM Group," said Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith.

The deal comes as executives seek more consolidation in Europe's fragmented airline industry, which they say is needed to compete with US and Middle Eastern rivals.

Earlier this year, Germany's Lufthansa bought a 41% stake in Italy's ITA Airways and a stake in Air Baltic. The Portuguese government is looking to privatize its national carrier TAP.

Lufthansa and Air France are also in talks about buying a stake in Spain's Air Europa.
SAS has 138 aircraft in service and carried more than 25 million passengers last year, generating revenues of 4.1 billion euros ($4.8 billion).

Air France-KLM group would have a majority of seats on the board of directors, while the Danish state will keep its 26.4% stake in SAS and its seats on the board.