Kazi Towhidul Alam, Deputy Managing Director of Al-Arafah Islami Bank Limited, speaks at the Iftar party Elephant Road branches in Dhaka recently.

Al-Arafah Islami Bank Limited organised discussion meetings on the Holy Ramadan followed by Iftar Mahfil at Daxminkhan and Elephant Road branches in Dhaka recently.

Md Habibur Rahman, Managing Director of the bank, attended the Iftar at Daxminkhan branch while Kazi Towhidul Alam, Deputy Managing Director of the bank at Elephant Road branch, said a press release.

Mufti Gias Uddin Al Madani, Hazi Khalil Mollah, businessmen, Md Nazmus Sadat, SVP, Abdul Mannan Akhand, Branch Manager, local peoples, attended the Iftar party at Daxminkhan branch.

M Fazlur Rahman, President and Managing Director of AB Bank, is seen at an Iftar party at a city hotel recently.

AB Bank Limited organised an Iftar Mahfil for media personnel at a hotel in Dhaka recently.

Journalists from print and electronic media and related media personnel attended the Iftar Mahfil, said a press release.

M Fazlur Rahman, President and Managing Director of AB Bank, presided over the function.

High officials of the bank were also present at the Iftar Mahfil.

AB Bank since its commencement 31 years ago, strived for effective media support in enhancing productive and modern banking in the country.

Bangladesh Development Bank Ltd (BDBL), a state-owned commercial bank, is set to introduce mobile banking this year, said a top official of the bank.

“We want to go mobile banking targeting to reach the disadvantaged group . We’ll send a proposal to Bangladesh Bank by the next 15 days to get its license,” Dr Md Zillur Rahman, Managing Director of the BDBL, told BSS.

In an exclusive interview, Dr Zillur said BiKash Ltd only transfers money but BDBL mobile financial service will have option of money transfer, withdrawal and deposit.

“We’ll introduce the mobile financial service by December,” he said adding that this service would reach all 64 districts by 2014.

The senior banker said the service will enable millions of banked and unbanked people to deposit, withdraw and transfer money through mobile phones.

Detailing the m-banking, the BDBL MD said any mobile user can register and open up a bank account and then do transactions through their mobile phones in easy and convenient manner.

None will have to come to the bank rather the bank will go to them once the mobile banking service is put in place, he said adding that it will be 24-hour banking.

He said the main objective of the e-banking is to make sure poor people’s easy access to banking services. “This green banking service will also create thousands of employments in rural areas as a good number of authorized agents would be appointed across the country.”

Thousands of crore of Taka kept in the name of rural associations but those money remained idle and does not come to main activities of the country’s economy.

“We want inject those idle money to banking channel through mobile banking,” said the senior banker.

Citing salient features of the banking service, he said free account opening, profit sharing among clients of the service are among those.

Eighty per cent of the deposited money of clients would be spent as loans, he said adding that it will in real sense give a big boost to the country’s poverty alleviation activities.

In the mobile banking service, he said, the BDBL plans to conduct all sorts of banking activities starting from opening of 10 in the mobile banking service Taka account and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

The BDBL has earned Taka 83.87 crore as net profit in 2012 while it disbursed Taka 448.93 crore as loans and realised Taka 276.56 crore during the same period.

The BDBL, having Taka 3,000 crore as asset while liability Taka 1500 crore, has now 26 branches across the country and of them three banks are in rural areas. —BSS

Dr. Mohammed Haider Ali Miah, Managing Director of Exim Bank Limited, was awarded Nawab Siraj-ud-daula gold medal for his exceptional contribution in liberation war, social work and banking sector.

State Minister for Industries Omar Faruk Chowdhury handed over the medal to the Exim Bank MD in an award giving ceremony at National Press Club VIP Lounge in Dhaka recently.

Dr. Mohammed Haider Ali Miah was appointed managing director of Exim Bank in 2012.

He joined the liberation war under sector-2 in Munshiganj.

A Rouf Chowdhury, Chairman of Bank Asia, inaugurates the new product of SALAMAH Islamic Banking titled ‘Cash Waqf’ at the Corporate Office of the bank at Paltan in Dhaka recently.

Bank Asia introduced new product of SALAMAH Islamic Banking titled ‘Cash Waqf’ at the bank’s Corporate Office at Paltan in Dhaka recently.

A Rouf Chowdhury, Chairman of the bank, formally inaugurated the new product, said a press release.

Mohammed Lakiotullah, VC, Shah Md Nurul Alam, Chairman of Board Audit Committee, Rumee A Hossain, VC of Board Audit Committee and EC, Md Mehmood Husain, President and MD, Aminul Islam,

Humaira Azam, Md Arfan Ali, DMD, and Afzalul Haq, Vice President and Head of Islamic Banking of the bank, attended the function.