A spokesperson for the Afghan Central Bank said today, Friday, that the acting governor of the bank under the Taliban government met with the Chinese ambassador this week to discuss banking relations and business. The sanctions imposed on Afghanistan have severely hindered the banking sector, along with a liquidity shortage due to the freezing of the central bank's assets and the halt of spending in the development sector. Concerns regarding regulation among global banks have also largely isolated the official banking sector from the global financial system.
There are no official relations between China and Afghanistan, but Beijing has kept its embassy in Kabul open after the Taliban took control of the country in 2021. Recently, China hinted that it is economically interested in its neighbor, and while some Chinese executives have raised security concerns, they stated that they are considering investment opportunities, particularly in the mining sector.
The spokesperson for the central bank, Habibullah Noori, told Reuters that "during the meeting, discussions were held on the economy, banking relations, business, and some related issues," adding that the meeting took place yesterday, Thursday, in Kabul, between Ambassador Wang Yu and Acting Central Bank Governor Mullah Hidayatullah Badri. Badri is a prominent figure in the Taliban and became the acting governor of the central bank in March after stepping down from his position as Minister of Finance.
