Wata Chemicals’ Stock Price Surges by Over 44%

Over the past seven years, 56 companies raised Tk5,178 crore through IPOs in Bangladesh, but 24 of them—collectively raising over Tk2,000 crore—have been downgraded to the Z and B categories due to poor financial performance.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) saw a significant decline on Sunday, with the DSEX index falling nearly 30 points, or 0.56%, to 5,174, marking its lowest level since February 10. This drop was driven by investor unease following tensions within the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) over the forced retirement of an executive director.

Four state-owned enterprises (SoEs) in Bangladesh reported cumulative losses of Tk 28,238 crore over 28 years due to inefficiencies. The Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) closed 25 mills in 2020, incurring Tk 9,497 crore in losses over 28 years, with profits reported only once.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has halted the Tk 5 crore fundraising by Doer Services Ltd following media reports on problematic client agreements and profitability. The regulator will form a committee with the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) to investigate the issues.

Trading in Treasury bonds on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) surged 55% year-on-year to Tk 1.31 billion last year, driven by higher interest rates and eased transaction processes through brokerage firms. Despite this growth, the market size has surpassed Tk 3 trillion, highlighting its potential.

TRANSFORM, an impact accelerator led by Unilever, the UK Government, and EY, announced grants of up to BDT 10 million each for two Bangladeshi SMEs focused on climate resilience.