$3.5b foreign loan coming in June

Apart from the $1.3 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, Bangladesh is likely to get $2.2 billion more from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), JICA, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the OPEC Fund.

Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Ahsan H Mansur revealed the new fund inflows at a press briefing held at the central bank headquarters in the capital on Wednesday.

In the pre-announced press meet, Ahsan H Mansur also claimed Bangladesh has met key IMF conditions on forex rate liberalization and tax net expansion to unlock $1.3 billion.

The fund is a combination of the third and fourth tranches of IMF’s $4.7 billion bailout package.

Ahsan H Mansur assured journalists that the dollar exchange rate would stay around the present rate and would not fluctuate arbitrarily.

People cannot push up the rate for serving vested interests as the currently heightened rate of remittance inflow and exports would prevent unruly adventurism, he noted.

The central bank has also taken steps to improve the country’s banking sector by reconstituting boards of 14 banks and putting checks on distributing dividends among bank shareholders, the eminent economist said.

Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governor Dr Habibur Rahman and other officials were also present at the press meet.