RBZ has released data showing some of the performance across key monetary aggregates for the year ended December 2025. The report is a first of similar nature for the new Sheriff at the Central Bank.

Some of the data contained in the report was traditionally released as part of the Monetary Policy Statement of the year, meaning such data would typically be released in February, a month from now, where the Policy Statement is usually announced.

The Bank could however, not hold back that long, and just had to publish some of the emerging data, replete with record performances across some key aggregates. The most defining statistic was the performance of Foreign Receipts, which we expanded below to show historical context and the nuances from its relationship with the key driver, exports.

Since dollarization in 2009, foreign receipts have grown 6.5 times from US$2.5 billion to US$16.2 billion in 2025. The later, is contained in the quoted RBZ report. In 2025, Foreign receipts reached their highest level powered by a strong performance in exports.

Exports which account for 62% of total foreign receipts have largely powered the foreign receipts performance, having grown from a mere US$1.6 billion in 2009 to US$10 billion in 2025, a 525% growth.

Another contribution worth noting is from diaspora remittances which grew from US$300 million in 2019 to US$2.2 billion in 2024, a surge of 633%. What this data shows is a 2-phased growth the first 10 years was characterized by choppy steady growth anchored on a low base and the second phase with robust rapid growth benefitting from a dollarized economy and a recovering mining sector.

In 2025, the strong foreign receipts performance helped currency stabilization buttressed by a tight monetary policy.

Zimbabwe Foreign Receipts & Exports 15 Year Trend

To speak more into the 15-year trend, the period between 2009–2012 saw a post-dollarisation rebound, with prices and trade stabilizing. The agriculture sector commenced a partial recovery while mining restarted at scale, in turn helping exports growth.

The period between 2013 and 2016 saw a stagnation largely driven by the ills of a strong dollar and limited monetary policy flexibility as well as emerging economic instability from excesses in government spend.  There was largely a decline to flat growth in both exports and receipts. Some of the key factors driving performance were the liquidity crunch, weak investor confidence and mining infrastructure quenching for recapitalization.

Between 2017 and 2019 foreign receipts recorded a mild recovery but this recovery was interrupted by economic volatility as dollarization faded under the guise of bond notes. The economy had morphed into a dualized currency economy where the RTGS became the defacto local currency. The political landscape also saw some shift as the 2^nd republic was ushered.

2020 was a shock year with both variables, exports and foreign receipts, dipping. The shock came as a result of the emergence of COVID-19. The pandemic impacted global supply chains. Endogenously, Zimbabwe experienced higher gold side-marketing levels as disparities in exchange rates impacted the sector.

The period from 2021 to 2025 was the most significant phase of all as it saw a structural breakaway. It realized a step-change upward, especially in foreign receipts. Receipts accelerate faster than exports buttressed by diaspora remittances. Likewise, the RBZ adjusted retention threshold for miners upwards, encouraging production.

Other supporting structures include RBZ’s gold mobilization programs and better formalization of artisanal and small-scale miners. Supporting the gold sector was a record performance by PGM players.

Key takeaways are that while the receipts performance has been impressive, Zimbabwe’s foreign exchange performance is increasingly gold-price-sensitive, not just volume sensitive. The dynamic introduces cyclical exposure to global monetary policy.