The Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA; ) is the emerging
central bank
A central bank, reserve bank, national bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the monetary policy of a country or monetary union. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central bank possesses a monopoly on increasing the mo ...
of
Palestine
Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
. The PMA, located in
Ramallah
Ramallah ( , ; ) is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, that serves as the administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusalem, at an average elevation of abov ...
, was established in 1994 following the signing of the
Protocol on Economic Relations
The Protocol on Economic Relations, also called the Paris Protocol, was an agreement between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, signed on 29 April 1994, and incorporated with minor amendments into the Oslo II Accord of September 19 ...
(Paris Protocol) between the Palestinians and Israel. It is an independent public institution responsible for the formulation and implementation of monetary and banking policies, to safeguard the banking sector and to ensure the growth of the national economy in a balanced manner.
PMA supervises the 13 Palestinian and foreign banks operating in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It is not responsible for the issue of a
Palestinian currency. PMA operates under the authority of PMA Law Number 2 of 1997, an act of the
Palestine Legislative Council, and the Banking Law Number 9 of 2010. The logo of the PMA pays homage to the
Palestinian pound, minted and circulated under the
British Mandate. The logo contains the name of the PMA in English and Arabic, written on the historic 5 mils coin.
Objectives
PMA aims to maintain monetary and financial stability and to promote sustainable economic growth through:
* effective and transparent regulation and supervision of banks, specialized lending institutions and money changers operating in Palestine.
* overseeing the implementation and operation of modern, efficient payment systems.
* development and execution of monetary policy designed to achieve
price stability Price stability is a goal of monetary and fiscal policy aiming to support sustainable rates of economic activity. Policy is set to maintain a very low rate of inflation or deflation. For example, the European Central Bank (ECB) describes price s ...
.
PMA is active in promoting
financial inclusion
Financial inclusion is the availability and equality of opportunities to access financial services. It refers to processes by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and services—which ...
policy and is a member of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion.
Governors
The governors of the PMA have been:
*
Fouad Bseiso, December 1994 – November 2001
*
Amin Haddad, December 2001 – February 2005
*
George al-Abed, February 2005 – November 2007
*
Jihad al-Wazir, January 2008 – November 2015
*
Azzam Shawwa, November 2015 – January 2021
*
Feras Milhem, January 2021 – January 2025
*
Yahya Shannar, January 2025 -
See also
*
Economy of the Palestinian territories
The economy of Palestine refers to the economic activity of Palestine. Palestine receives substantial financial aid from various international donors, including governments and international organizations. In 2020, the inflation rate was -0. ...
*
List of central banks
This is a list of central banks.
Central banks by alphabetical order
This is a list of central banks. Countries that are only partially recognized internationally are marked with an asterisk (*).
Major central banks by currency allocation p ...
*
Islamic banking and finance
Islamic banking, Islamic finance ( ''masrifiyya 'islamia''), or Sharia-compliant finance is banking or Finance, financing activity that complies with Sharia (Islamic law) and its practical application through the development of Islamic economi ...
*
Islamic socialism
Islamic socialism is a political philosophy that incorporates elements of Islam into a system of socialism. As a term, it was coined by various left-wing Muslim leaders to describe a more spiritual form of socialism. Islamic socialists believe ...
*
Islamic economics
Islamic economics () refers to the knowledge of economics or economic activities and processes in terms of Islamic principles and teachings. Islam has a set of specific moral norms and values about individual and social economic behavior. There ...
References
External links
*
Official PMA YouTube Page
{{Authority control
Palestine
Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
Economy of Palestine
1994 establishments in Palestine
Organizations established in 1994