帕劳共和国：若干问题

SELECTED ISSUES This paperonPalauwas prepared by a staff team of the International Monetary Fund asbackground documentation for the periodic consultation with the member country. It isbased on the information available at the time it wascompleted onJanuary13, 2026. Copies of this report are available to the public from International Monetary Fund•Publication ServicesPO Box 92780•Washington, D.C. 20090Telephone: (202) 623-7430•Fax: (202) 623-7201E-mail:publications@imf.org Web:http://www.imf.org International Monetary FundWashington, D.C. REPUBLIC OF PALAU SELECTED ISSUES Approved ByThe Asia and PacificDepartment Prepared By Ricardo Davico, YuanyanSophia Zhang (APD),with inputs from Kieran Murphy and Jeanne Verrier (MCM),Grace Jackson, Stephanie Forte (LEG), and guidance fromJennifer Elliott (MCM), and Harald Finger (APD). CONTENTS MODERNIZING PALAU’S FINANCIAL SYSTEM: OPPORTUNITIES AND RISKS ________2 A. Background of Palau’s Financial System: Overview of Key Impediments ________________2B. Opportunities and Risks of Fintech Initiatives ___________________________________________8C. Policy Issues __________________________________________________________________________10 BOX 1: Overview of Palau’s Banking System __________________________________________________14 FIGURE 1. Palau’s Banking System _________________________________________________________________7 References_______________________________________________________________________________15 MODERNIZING PALAU’S FINANCIAL SYSTEM:OPPORTUNITIES AND RISKS Palau’s financial system faces structural challenges that inhibit effective financial intermediation,mobilization of domestic savings, and payment system efficiency. The authorities have been striving toaddress these challenges to support their economic diversification efforts through fintech and digitalinitiatives. While these initiatives are intended to modernize the payment system and retain domesticsavings, they also entail significant risks that need to be carefully managed with enhanced supervisionand regulations. Policy options need to be well tailored to suit the specific financial sector challenges,economic scale, and resource considerations in Palau. A.Background of Palau’s Financial System: Overview of Key Impediments 1.Access to private credit remains limited in Palau due to the unique features of its banking system.Palau’s banking system comprises three branches of U.S. FDIC-insured banks, twosmall non-FDIC-insured banks and one state-owned development bank. The U.S. FDIC-insuredbanks (the Bank of Guam, the Bank of Hawaii, and Bank Pacific) dominate the commercial bankingsector, accounting for 98 percent of total deposits. Given their access to U.S. capital markets, the U.S.branches invest mostly offshore, resulting in very limited lending to local businesses or households.1Net foreign assets amount to nine times greater than domestic private sector credit. The NationalDevelopment Bank of Palau (NDBP) does not take deposits as it is mostly funded by the governmentand external lenders, but it lends domestically (Box 1).2Despite a growing deposit base, total bankcredit in Palau is around 25 percent of GDP and slightly over 10 percent of GDP for commercialbanks, which remains one of the lowest ratios among its Pacific Island peers. 2.The NDBP plays a crucial role in addressing the credit gap caused by the limitedinvolvement of commercial banks in financial intermediation, but its lending remains constrained by funding sources.Credit from the NDBP accounts for about half of total domesticcredit, one of the highest shares among the Pacific Islands. Around three quarters of the NDBP’sportfolio consists of housing loans, with the remainder allocated to aquaculture projects (2 percent)and commercial loans (20 percent). The NDBP is well capitalized and has one of the lowest non-performing loan ratios (less than one percent as of FY2025) among the development banks in PacificIslands before the Pandemic. Nonetheless, the NDBP faces funding constraints because it is notlicensed to take deposits and has been funded primarily through long-term borrowings and loanrepayments. As a state-owned development bank, the NDBP’s lending decisions reflect Palau’sdevelopment objectives and are not solely commercial-based3. 3.Ineffective financial intermediation can be partly attributed to deep-rooted structuralissues within the banking system.Commercial bank lending in Palau has been significantlylower than that of its peers, with a primary focus on unsecured, small-sized loans to individuals.While common constraints among small and micro-state economies –such as limited businessdemand for credit and a small, undiversified economic structure –partly explain the low level ofbank credit, Palau-specific legal and structural issues may also play a significant role. 4.Lending Cap:Under the usury law, the interest rate on commercial lending is capped at the U.S.prime rate plus 4 percentage po