DHAKA, April 29, 2020 (BSS) – Around 25 lakh Mobile Financial Service (MFS) accounts have been opened in the readymade garment (RMG) sector since April 4 in line with a government’s move to provide salaries and allowances to its workers and employees through mobile banking.
The accounts have been opened through three MFS providers – Bkash, Rocket and Nagad, said a media statement of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
“We have applied to Bangladesh Bank to extend application deadline of opening MFS accounts up to 2nd May.
We are trying to complete every formality. As soon as the formalities are over, we should be on track. And it is the first disbursement and huge MFS registrations are also going on, thus we will update when we are ready,” as per the media statement.
Earlier, Bangladesh Bank instructed all authorities concerned to open MFS accounts for all workers and employees of export-oriented industries and factories by April 20 to facilitate providing salaries and allowances from the government’s financial package.
Prime minister Sheikh Hasina announced a stimulus package of Tk 5,000 crore for export-oriented industries to fight the impact of coronavirus on the country’s economy.
Under the stimulus package, the central bank will provide loans without interest as per the demand of banks, but banks can take 2 per cent one-time service charge for bearing their administrative costs.
Export-oriented industries, which export minimum 80 per cent of its total production, will be eligible for the government-announced financial stimulus fund.
The owners or management of those industries could take loan from that fund and thus could disburse the salaries of their employees and workers for three months (April, May and June of this year).
The borrowers will get a six-month grace period, meaning that they will start paying back the borrowed money in installments to the government from the seventh month of receiving the money.
The loan amount will be repaid in two years by 18 installments.
If anyone does not pay the loan installment in time, the loan will be classified as per the conventional rules and 2 percent interest will have to be paid on the outstanding installments.