CDIP to Issue Tk 171 Crore Unsecured Zero-Coupon Bond

Agent banking has successfully extended financial services beyond urban centers into rural Bangladesh, becoming a trusted channel for savings and basic banking. By February 2025, the number of agent banking accounts reached 2.44 crore, with over 25 lakh new accounts added in just one year. Notably, rural residents dominate this growth, holding nearly 2 crore accounts, and women now account for over 1.2 crore accounts.

BRAC Bank, in partnership with VisionSpring, aims to provide eye screenings to over 46,000 individuals in 2024 under its CSR initiative, Aporajeyo Ami. Expanding beyond factory workers, the program now includes BRAC Bank's head office staff and TARA customers.

A study published in Nature Portfolio reveals that increased access to credit is driving rural transformation in Bangladesh by boosting agricultural productivity and creating non-farm employment opportunities. The research, based on data from the Bangladesh Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) across three waves (2005, 2010, 2016), highlights that mean credit disbursements per household rose from Tk 12,116 in 2005 to Tk 27,616 in 2016, while the proportion of households with credit access increased from 26.2% to 35.8%.

The Shikha project, launched by the European Union and Brac, addresses gender-based violence (GBV) in Bangladesh, where recent studies show alarming rates of harassment: 80% of women in garment factories, 74% of female students, 94% of women using public transport, and 68% of women on online platforms have faced violence.

Loan disbursements to the CMSME sector dropped by 16% in the July-September quarter of FY25, falling to Tk 44,202 crore from Tk 52,654 crore in FY24, as per Bangladesh Bank data. Political instability, including protests and government unrest, contributed to the decline by dampening business confidence and investment.

A study titled "Microfinance Competition in the Presence of Moneylenders: Theory and Evidence" found that the presence of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in rural areas significantly lowers interest rates and reduces reliance on informal moneylenders.