Managing Director and CEO of City Bank K Mahmood Sattar presides over the Bank’s Retail Banking Conference 2012 at the Bank’s head office.

City Bank organised its Retail Conference for 2012 recently at its head office. The Bank holds this annual conference each year for all its Branch Managers, senior staff members, Cards Division personnel in order to roll out the current year’s business and operational strategies and so on, said a press release.

The theme of this year’s conference was ‘In Focus: Maximizing Branch Profitability’.

In his speech Managing Director and CEO of the Bank K Mahmood Sattar promised to establish a sophisticated technology driven Bank.

He emphasised on reformation of existing structure and turning it into a world class service oriented Bank where clients will get complete financial solution.

The Daily Sun/Bangladesh/ 2nd June 2012

Christine Lagarde, IMF Chief

WASHINGTON: The IMF and Spain both denied yesterday any talks on a bailout loan program for Madrid, as Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria met the global lender’s chief Christine Lagarde.

“There is no such plan. We have not received any request to that effect and we are not doing any work in relation to any financial support,” Lagarde said after the two met.

And Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos called the “rumors” that Madrid was discussing a rescue loan program with the International Monetary Fund “senseless.”

“My desire is to not come out and deny these rumours because they are senseless,” he told a televised economic conference in the coastal town of Sitges.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the IMF’s European department had begun discussing contingency plans for an emergency loan to Spain as Madrid struggles to keep its banking sector afloat.

“Thoughts are already being discussed” on a rescue by the European department, a source “involved in the handling of the Spanish crisis” told the Journal.

But the IMF strongly denied any rescue was nigh.

“The IMF is not drawing up plans that involve financial assistance for Spain. Nor has Spain requested financial support from the IMF,” spokesman Gerry Rice told journalists.

The meeting between the Lagarde and Saenz de Santamaria was “to discuss recent economic developments in Spain and the eurozone,” he added.

The Daily Sun/Bangladesh/ 2nd June 2012

Mirza Mahmud Rafiqur Rahman, Deputy managing director of United Commercial Bank Limited has been promoted as additional managing director of the Bank.

Rahman, a long-time successful company secretary of the Bank held different management positions in the arena of corporate affairs, business development, human resources, public

relations, company secretariat etc, said a press release.

Before joining UCB, he worked for The City Bank Ltd.

The Daily Sun/Bangladesh/ 2nd June 2012

Abdul Jalil, Chairman of Mercantile Bank, speaks at a press conference to mark the 13th anniversary of the Bank in Dhaka Friday.

Mercantile Bank Ltd pledged to focus more on new technologies, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and mobile banking in the days to come to meet new banking demands, officials of the Bank said at a press conference to mark its 13th anniversary.

The Bank would also open new branches in remote parts of the country, AKM Shahidul Haque, managing director of the Bank,

said at the press briefing in Dhaka yesterday.

“Our major focus will be introducing new banking technologies in the new year. We also like to expand our SME and mobile banking services,” he said.

Established on June 2, 1999, the third generation private commercial bank enters into its 14th year of operation today (June 2, 2012).

“We’ve been contributing to our national economic development for last 13 years,” said Abdul Jalil, chairman of the Bank.

At the very outset, directors of the Bank had pledged not to involve the Bank with their own banking activities, later replicated by Bangladesh Bank, bringing successes to the Bank, said Jalil, also a ruling party lawmaker.

“We had also promised not to carry coals to Newcastle, and not to concentrate only on profit multiplying, resulting in its success,” he continued.

Jalim said in the coming days the Bank would also gear up its corporate social responsibilities, especially in the areas of healthcare and education.

He also pointed out few of the activities of the Mercantile Bank Foundation, the social work wing of the Bank.

He also informed media about the bank’s future plan of setting up charitable hospitals and kidney dialysis centres across the country. He added that the Bank would distribute Tk 10 million among impoverished students as scholarships next year.

As part of its 13th anniversary programmes, Mercantile Bank Foundation will also honour 13 noted personalities and an organisation of the country to recognise their contributions towards society, officials said.

The Mercantile Bank Achievement Award 2012 goes to Prof Abdul Mannan in education, Prof Harun Ur Rashid in medical, Aly Zaker in culture, Lt. Col. (Retd) Abu Osman Chowdhury in freedom fighter category, Hasan Hafizur Rahman (Posthumous) for research on liberation war, Prof Mosharof Hossain for economics and related research, poet Belal Chowdhury in Bangla language and literature, Abdur Rouf Chowdhury in industry and trade, Towab Khan in journalism, Shakib Al Hassan in sports, Haripad Kapali for agricultural research and development, BRAC founder Sir Fazle Hasan Abed for social infrastructure, Ibrahim Khaled in banking while the only organisation is Bangabandhu Museum.

The Daily Sun/Bangladesh/ 2nd June 2012

Abu Taher Mohammad Saleh, Deputy Managing Director of IBBL, seen with the newly-recruited female probationary officers at the Islami Bank Training institute in Dhaka. Q

Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited organized a orientation programme for its newly-appointed female probationary officers in Dhaka.

Islami Bank Training and Research Institute organised the orientation programme, said a press release Wednesday.

Forty one newly-recruited female probationary officers participated in the programme.

Eng. Mustafa Anwar, Vice Chairman, Eng. Md. Eskander Ali Khan, Chairman, Executive Committee, Md. Shahidul Islam, Chairman Audit Committee Md. Habibur Rahman, Syed Abdullah Mohammad Saleh, Deputy Managing Directors, Abu Taher Mohammad Saleh, Abdus Sadeque Bhuiyan, Executive Vice Presidents of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited were attended.

Earlier another 96 female officers joined Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited. Mentionable that some female officers has been working the Bank from bottom to executive level, the release added.

The Daily Sun/ Bangladesh/ 31- May-2012