After a periodic lull, the state owned Sonali Bank (SB) has resumed its full credit operation with a cautious loan disbursement target of Taka 80 billion by next June thanks to its robust growth in deposits and impressive loan recovery.

Talking to BSS, Pradip Chandra Datta, Managing Director and CEO of Sonali Bank said his bank now stands on a strong financial footing due to robust deposit growth and a record recovery of classified loans mostly in cash from a few big defaulters during the last six months.

The bank’s deposit jumped from Tk 543.95 billion to 633.95 billion during the last fiscal and continues to rising when it recovered a record of nearly Tk 29 billion outstanding loan mostly in cash during the last eight months. This enabled the bank to start taking an intensive loan disbursement plan for financing projects, he said.

“We have formulated a cautious new credit policy to disburse nearly Tk 80 billion to real entrepreneurs with 100 per cent recovery target. We have given instructions to all of our branches to choose real entrepreneurs and potential projects very cautiously in line with our new policy and disburse loans quickly”, he said.

Of the total loans, officials said nearly Tk 800 crore would be invested in small and medium industries where the bank had a recovery success of more than 90 per cent and Tk 770 crore has been allocated for loans to agricultural sector.

The bank is under pressure to reduce interest expense that shot up to Tk 3.20 billion on June 30, 2013. The bank’s interest expense jumped by Tk 3.10 billion and increase interest income dropped by 1.54 billion as on June 30, 2013, according to a Soanli Bank statement made on provisional figures.

Sonali Bank, the largest commercial bank in the country, became the discussion of the table in 2012 due to some big loan scams that swindled nearly Tk 40 billion crore from its exchequer specially in a time when it was suffering from the overburden of mounting classified loan of Tk 20 billion.

News:The Daily Sun/13-Oet-2013

NCC Bank Limited opened its 98th branch with online facilities at Pahartali Chowmuhani at Rawozan in Chittagong recently.

Chairman of the bank Md. Nurun Newaz Salim formally inaugurated the branch as chief guest, said a press release on Saturday.

Managing Director and CEO of the bank Mohammed Nurul Amin presided over the function while Chairman of the Audit Committee Md. Amirul Islam attended as special guest.

Additional Managing Director of NCC Bank Golam Hafiz Ahmed, Deputy Managing Directors Swapan Kumar Das, TM Faruque Chowdhury, Akhtar Hamid Khan, local elites, renowned businessmen and senior executives of the bank were also present.

Md. Nurun Newaz Salim said NCC Bank is giving priority to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) at Raozan as the sector is experiencing tremendous expansion there.

Mentioning about various schemes and activities of NCC Bank, Mohammed Nurul Amin said that various steps have been taken to facilitate remittance from anywhere of the world through NCC Bank.

News:Daily Sun/13-Oet-2013

Bangladesh is the 7th largest remittance receiving country in the world and now it accounts for about 11% of GDP

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur Rahman said Bangladesh is now one of the five least costly corridors of remittances across the world because of efficiency enhancing activities in Bangladesh.

He said Bangladesh is the 7th largest remittance receiving country in the world which has been growing at double digits since 1980s, and now it accounts for about 11% of GDP.

He was delivering a speech at the Boston University Center for Finance, Law & Policy, USA on “Role of Remittance in Enhancing Inclusive Growth and Macroeconomic Stability” On Thursday.

The governor said mobile banking/smart cards, drawing arrangements, exchange houses, MFIs, Post Offices and uses of ICT is playing important role in collecting and distributing the remittances at low cost.

“Remittances are being increasingly used in investment rather than consumption creating significant impact on inclusive growth and macroeconomic stability,” he said.

As policy steps to smooth remittance inflow, separate savings instruments have been created for non-resident Bangladeshis, such as a non-resident foreign currency deposit, USD premium bond, wage-earners’ development bond, according to Bangladesh Bank.

Off branch remittance delivery to beneficiaries through smart card/mobile phone banking have been introduced and thirty seven banks have set up 1,084 drawing arrangements with 288 exchange houses all over the world to bring down remittance cost.

Consumption is the initial use of remittance funds by recipients. Loan repayments and home building and home renovation are also important uses. In the second round, families may utilise remittances for investments in micro to medium enterprises, such as grocery stores, poultry farms, beauty saloons, fish processing, hotels, and restaurants.

According to Bangladesh Bank data, in 2008-09, the remittance inflow was $9.7bn against the 650,059 migrant labour and it rose to $14.5bn in 2012-13 despite the number of migrant workers dropped to 441,301. Global Diaspora remittance flows projected to reach $550bn in 2013.

Remittance have contributed significantly to growing foreign exchange reserve of Bangladesh, which now stand at a historical high of more than USD$16bn.

Despite being a trade deficit country, Bangladesh has been enjoying a positive balance in the current account during the last five years because of the favorable impact of remittances.  

DHAKA, OCT 11: City Bank on Friday launched its new internet banking service named “Citytouch”. Bank’s Chairman Rubel Aziz inaugurated the service at a press event in Dhaka.

Others  present at the occasion were the Managing Director and CEO K Mahmood sattar, Additional Managing Directors--Sohail RK Hussain, Faruq M Ahmed,

Deputy Managing Director and CCO Mashrur Arefin, Deputy Managing Directors--Badrudduza Choudhury, Sk Mohammad Maroof and others

. Citytouch is a full-fledged banking solution that can be downloaded onto customers mobile devices like cell phones, pads and also onto laptops, desktops etc. from Android, Apple, Blackberry and Nokia apps stores. 
It can also be used by visiting www.citytouch.com.bd.

The services of Citytouch include real time transaction of customer’s current, savings, fixed deposit accounts; the maintenance of those accounts in real time; fund transfer from City Bank accounts to the accounts of any bank in Bangladesh; 

payment of mobile phone and credit card bills 

online; purchase of airline ticket in domestic routes; payment of school fees; online shopping etc.
This highly secured platform allows customer to find out real time street directions for the branches and ATMs of the bank too. 

Its also provides full-scale information of all products and services of the bank.

Union Bank Limited was awarded the “Most Respected Company Award-2013” among the 4th-general bank in the country.

The Business Asia awarded the prestigious award to the Union Bank Limited, said a press release.

Industries Minister Dilip Barua handed over the award to Abdul Hamid Mia, Managing Director of Union Bank Limited at a function at a hotel in Dhaka recently.

AHT Imam, Prime Minister’s Public Administration Adviser, Geeti Ara Shafia Chowdhury, former adviser to a caretaker government, Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, President, FBCCI and high officials of Union Bank Limited were present at the function.

News:Daily Sun/12-Oct-2013