Bolivia is close to reaching a financing agreement with the International Monetary Fund and could introduce a floating exchange rate as soon as this week to replace its long-standing dollar peg, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing people familiar with an investor call.

Deputy Treasury and Public Credit Minister Christian Morales told investors the government is preparing for foreign-exchange unification, under which the central bank would retain the ability to intervene in the new floating-rate system, according to the report.

Bolivia has maintained a fixed exchange rate of 6.86 to 6.96 bolivianos per US dollar since 2011, though the government has increasingly relied on a weaker reference rate of about 10 bolivianos per dollar, implying a devaluation of more than 40%, Bloomberg reported.

Morales also said Bolivia is seeking about $3 billion in IMF financing and could return to international debt markets in the second half of the year after issuing $1 billion of dollar bonds due 2031 in May, according to the report.

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