During the first six months of 2023, four state-owned banks faced a significant challenge in recovering loans from their top 20 defaulting borrowers, managing to collect a mere Tk 119 crore. This amount represents a mere 5.43% of their ambitious target of Tk 2,190 crore from these defaulters.
The top 20 defaulting borrowers owe a staggering Tk23,421 crore to Agrani, Janata, Sonali, and Rupali Banks. According to the Bangladesh Bank officials expressed concerns about irregularities in loan disbursements, attributing the dismal performance to the ongoing economic slowdown.
Janata Bank faced a particularly challenging situation, with an outstanding amount of Tk 8,739 crore owed by the top 20 defaulting borrowers, constituting 58% of the bank’s total defaulted loans. Agrani Bank and Sonali Bank also struggled with outstanding amounts of Tk 6,854 crore and Tk 4,284 crore, respectively. The central bank’s June 2023 report revealed that five state-owned banks in Bangladesh collectively hold Tk 74,454 crore in non-performing loans, accounting for 25% of their total loan portfolio, in contrast to the overall banking sector’s 8.16% NPL ratio.
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