Overview
- Scott Bessent’s team sold roughly USD 2 billion locally before the Buenos Aires vote and then unwound via a prearranged swap, allowing Washington to close its position without losses, according to market accounts.
- The BCRA sold more than USD 1.1 billion in three days during the peak stress and later reported higher swap-related liabilities and net dollar outflows, even as it declined to confirm the operation publicly.
- An economist’s report describes an arbitrage in which the U.S. Treasury placed the pesos it received into a BCRA note yielding about 4% monthly and then repurchased dollars through the swap, leaving the cost on the BCRA balance sheet.
- Fresh supply from about USD 1.7 billion in corporate dollar-denominated negotiable obligations helped the wholesale exchange rate finish the week near ARS 1,403, with analysts watching if authorities use the window to buy reserves.
- President Javier Milei, Economy Minister Luis Caputo and BCRA director Federico Furiase prioritize reserve accumulation within exchange bands, while investors and economists press for more flexibility and consider tools ranging from additional U.S. swap usage to bank encaje dollars or debt operations.