Sri Lanka plans to relax its strict foreign exchange controls, reflecting new confidence in the country's finances after the end of a 37-year conflict on the island, the central bank said Monday. Sri Lankans will be allowed to open foreign bank accounts, while local firms will be able to seek listings in overseas markets according to new laws to be brought in shortly, Central Bank of Sri Lanka governor Nivard Cabraal said. Foreigners will also be allowed to invest freely in bonds issued by local companies and be granted freedom to open Sri Lankan rupee accounts, he added. 'With our foreign reserves at a historic high of 5.2 billion dollars, sufficient to meet over six months of imports, we thought it is time to relax some foreign exchange regulations,' Cabraal told businessmen in Colombo. The bank hopes to make the proposals law by March. Under other changes, Sri Lankans will be allowed to open and maintain bank accounts overseas and buy shares or invest in the bonds of foreign companies. Sri Lankan insurance companies will also be allowed to invest part of their assets overseas in line with the broad foreign exchange relaxation regime. Government forces crushed the Tamil Tiger rebels in May last year, bringing to an end their 37-year fight for independence. Since the conflict ended, the government has held a series of treasury bond sales to build up its reserves. The International Monetary Fund in July approved a 2.6-billion-dollar rescue after the nation's reserves slumped to just over one billion dollars in March, when the military pushed their final offensive against the Tigers. 