Loss-Making Companies Dominate Gainers’ Chart

southeast Bank has been embroiled in a major financial scandal involving embezzlement, irregular recruitment, fund mismanagement, and loan-related anomalies. Following the change in government, internal audits and Bangladesh Bank inspections revealed these irregularities.

In the fourth quarter (October-December) of 2024, the weighted average interest rates on both deposits and advances increased, driven by liquidity shortages in some banks. To attract deposits, banks offered higher interest rates, leading to a rise in the average deposit rate to 6.04%—a 2.7 percentage point increase from the previous quarter.

Government debt from the banking system in Bangladesh has surged, with a net borrowing of BDT 38,510 crore recorded by March 10 of the current fiscal year. This marks a significant increase, almost double the amount borrowed in the first seven months of the year. The rise is attributed to factors such as lower revenue collection, unmet loan expectations from savings certificates, and decreased foreign loans.

Bangladesh’s banking sector is burdened with bad loans, reaching a record amount of BDT 345,765 crore by December 2024. To address this, Bangladesh Bank has initiated an affordable housing project, utilizing mortgaged land linked to defaulted loans.

Bangladesh Bank (BB) has restructured the boards of three private commercial banks: NRB Commercial Bank, NRB Bank, and Meghna Bank. The BB removed the existing boards led by Parvez Tamal at NRBC Bank, Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman at NRB Bank, and HN Ashequr Rahman at Meghna Bank.

The Bangladesh interim government has formed a six-member committee to review the 2016 Bangladesh Bank reserve heist, with recommendations due in three months. Headed by law adviser Asif Nazrul, the committee includes members from various sectors, including Ahsan H Mansur, the Bangladesh Bank governor.