Santo Domingo.- The debt of the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD) has expanded significantly since the start of the century, reaching $20,442 million dollars at the end of the third quarter of this year.

According to the General Directorate of Public Credit, this figure represents 17% of the gross domestic product (GDP). This is a spectacular increase compared to 2000, when the debt amounted to 1,156 million dollars, which represents an increase of 1,768.3% during the period.

From 2000 to 2019, the average annual debt of the BCRD was $6,622 million dollars, reaching a maximum of $11,488 million in 2019, which represented 12.9% of GDP.

However, in September of this year, debt increased by an additional $8.955 billion, an increase of 43.8% in just 45 months.

As of September of this year, the total debt represents an expansion of 15.5% compared to December 2022.

In terms of composition, the Central Bank’s debt in 2000 comprised 77.1% external debt and 22. 9% internal debt.

This changed significantly after the 2003 financial crisis, when domestic debt increased from $393.2 million to $1.703 billion, an increase of 76.9% in one year.

Since then, domestic debt has followed an upward trend, reaching an average of $5,792 million annually between 2000 and 2019.

The recent increase in Central Bank debt is attributed to the issuance of more financial certificates to cover the debt.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) also advises recapitalizing the Central Bank as a key medium-term economic policy.