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BB-INTEREST-RATE
Private banks gradually bringing down lending rate to single digit
DHAKA, July 21, 2019 (BSS) – Like the state-owned commercials banks, private commercial banks are gradually bringing down their lending rate to single digit as per the instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The information was revealed today after a meeting among the high officials of Bangladesh Bank (BB) and managing directors and chief executive officers of the commercial banks at the central bank headquarters in the city.
BB Governor Fazle Kabir presided over the meeting while its chief spokesman Serajul Islam and Chairman of the Association of Bankers Bangladesh (ABB) Syed Mahbubur Rahman briefed journalists about the outcome of the meeting.
During the meeting, Serajul Islam said, BB high officials exchanged views with the managing directors and chief executive officers of the different scheduled banks for fixing future activities to bring down the existing lending rate to single digit and the huge amount of Non-Performing Loan (NPL) in a tolerable level.
ABB Chairman Syed Mahbubur Rahman said some banks have already brought down their lending rate to single digit and the rest of the banks are trying to gradually offer the new rate.
“Lending rate depends on supply and demand. If banks can deposit money by six percent interest rate, they can easily lend money at 9 percent. In this regard, the government must help the banks,” he added.
Mahbubur Rahman, also managing director of Dhaka Bank Limited, said the BB officials and top management of banks discussed many issues, including present situation of economy, investment, growth and NPL.
“We made an elaborate discussion on NPL. We hoped that the rate of NPL will come down within 10 percent in the new July statistic of the Bangladesh Bank as the government and bankers are providing all sorts of efforts to bring down the NPL within a tolerable level,” he added.
BSS/KUC/MMA/1951hrs