Draft telecom policy keeps door open for monopoly
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission’s (BTRC) draft policy to reform its complex licensing regime arrives with bold promises — streamlining processes, encouraging competition, and attracting foreign investment.
14 May 2025, 18:00 PM
Govt’s bank borrowing target may shrink in next budget
The government is planning to significantly reduce its bank borrowing target in the upcoming fiscal year as it aims to narrow the budget deficit by scaling down the overall budget size.
13 May 2025, 18:00 PM
Starlink gets 90-day waiver to operate without local gateway
The internet regulator in Bangladesh has granted Starlink permission to supply bandwidth from outside the country for 90 days.
12 May 2025, 18:00 PM
Budget to shrink amid fiscal strain
Bangladesh’s interim government is preparing to unveil a rare contractionary budget on June 2, driven by a sharp rise in interest payment that is crowding out fiscal space and forcing spending cuts.
10 May 2025, 18:00 PM
BBS finally empowered to publish data independently
As part of policy reforms aimed at improving the credibility and accuracy of national statistics, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) has been empowered to publish official data without prior government approval.
8 May 2025, 18:00 PM
Local handset production drops as grey market expands
Handset production in Bangladesh declined significantly in the first quarter of 2025 as the grey market continued to dominate the domestic market.
29 April 2025, 18:00 PM
BTRC to ask Banglalink to pay at least Tk 70cr in tower sale fees
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has decided to issue a final directive to Banglalink Digital Communications Ltd, asking the mobile operator to deposit 5.5 percent of the total value of its tower sales, along with all applicable VAT and late fees, to Summit Towers Limited within ten working days.
28 April 2025, 18:00 PM
BTRC approves licence for Starlink
This is the swiftest recommendation from the BTRC for any such licence, according to a BTRC official.
27 April 2025, 18:00 PM
Reprioritise spending, bring financial reforms: IMF suggests better use of public money
The government should reprioritise spending, take steps to reduce corruption and initiate financial sector reforms for better use of public money with a view to overcoming challenges brought on by the pandemic, suggests the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
19 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Prepaid Gas Meters: Perks aplenty but installation slow
The installation of prepaid gas meters is going on at a snail’s pace even though the system comes with many perks, including cuts in customers’ cost and a reduction in gas wastage.
16 January 2022, 18:00 PM
'Selling like hot cakes': Estimated size of cake, pastry market app Tk 400cr
Cake sales in Bangladesh are growing at a faster pace, driven by changing taste and consumption while celebrating various occasions.
12 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Foreign aid use target to remain unchanged
The government plans to keep its foreign aid use target unchanged in the next fiscal year compared to the current fiscal year owing to lower utilisation of development allocations and projected reduced spending related to the pandemic, especially for vaccination.
11 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Rising inflation eats up wage gains
Wages have ticked up in Bangladesh in recent months, but rising inflation, fueled by internal and external factors, has eroded the gains for the workers in various sectors.
8 January 2022, 18:00 PM
JV to invest $100m in hi-tech park
Bangladesh Cards Ltd, a joint venture between Japanese, Australian and Bangladeshi investors, is going to invest $100 million in a local hi-tech park to manufacture high-end technology products, including smart cards and specialised security items, to cater to the growing domestic and international markets.
8 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Non-food inflation: a runaway train
Non-food inflation has been unbridled since the government hiked diesel and kerosene prices two months ago, touching 7 per cent in December, a six-year high, pounding consumers.
6 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Mobile money booms, empowers unbanked
Mobile financial services, seen as a means of poverty alleviation and financial inclusion, fared well in 2021 in Bangladesh thanks to adaptation of the people to digital transactions amid the coronavirus pandemic,
6 January 2022, 18:00 PM
New year, old problems: Project revisions at 1st Ecnec meeting of 2022 despite PM’s directive
Old problems greet the Prime Minister-led Executive Committee of the National Economic Council when it convenes today for its first meeting for 2022: applications for project revisions.
3 January 2022, 18:00 PM
E-commerce’s New Year resolution: Regain customer trust
Regaining customers’ trust will be the major challenge for Bangladesh’s e-commerce sector in this new year of 2022.
3 January 2022, 18:00 PM
Energy price hike pushes up inflation
Consumers in Bangladesh were squeezed further in November as inflation kept rising, driven mainly by non-food inflation as the impacts of last month’s hike of diesel and kerosene prices are taking a hold.
26 December 2021, 18:25 PM
Energy price hike pushes up inflation
Consumers in Bangladesh were squeezed further in November as inflation kept rising, driven mainly by non-food inflation as the impacts of last month’s hike of diesel and kerosene prices are taking a hold.
26 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Budget outlay to see marginal cut
The budget for the current fiscal year is set to be slashed by 1.6 per cent in the revised one because of lower development expenditure, with the cut being marginal for healthy revenue collection and higher subsidy spending.
25 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Yuletide spirit comes to town
With Christmas just around the corner, upscale hotels are organising parties, restaurants are floating various offers and shops are stocking up on festive products ahead of the biggest religious festival for the Christian community.
19 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Bangladesh scales up might in mobile manufacturing
Just after completing his diploma in electronics from Magura Polytechnic Institute in 2019, Abdullah Al Noman got a job offer from Anira International Ltd, a local handset manufacturer. And he now works as a mobile assembly engineer for the company at its plant in Narayanganj’s Sonargaon.
18 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Loans at your fingertips
Borrowing loans has now become super easy for about a third of the population in Bangladesh thanks to bKash and City Bank as they have joined hands to roll out digital loans that are spreading around the world.
15 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Seaweed farming gains traction
If people visit Reju Khal, a hill stream that flows through the southern part of Cox’s Bazar district and into the Bay of Bengal, they would see long queues of bamboo poles along the waterway.
15 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Gig workers underpaid
Workers at ride-sharing and food delivery platforms in Bangladesh often work in dangerous condition and face high levels of insecurity and their income falls short of the living wage threshold, found a new study.
8 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Big push for solar, waste-based power
The government yesterday gave a big push to its renewable energy and waste-based power generation drive as it approved five projects with a combined electricity production capacity of 223.5 megawatts.
8 December 2021, 18:00 PM
Mega project for digital economy
The government is undertaking a mega project worth Tk 2,541 crore to create an enabling environment for the digital economy as it gears up for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
6 December 2021, 18:00 PM