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
Uber halts CNG service just after launch
Uber suspended its CNG-run auto-rickshaw service in Dhaka soon after its rollout, citing “mechanical faults.”
10 June 2021, 18:00 PM
Govt data on economy contradicts reality
Private sector credit growth has been sluggish, capital machinery imports declined, and industrial production grew slower in the outgoing fiscal year than a year ago.
7 June 2021, 18:00 PM
Focus shifting from power generation to transmission
The government has shifted its focus from power generation to transmission and distribution as the sector is struggling with overcapacity even though consumers are yet to receive a credible supply of electricity.
5 June 2021, 18:00 PM
A boost for ICT
The government is going to bolster the country’s expanding ICT sector with tax exemptions in six more services and VAT waiver on hardware manufacturing as it looks to prepare the nation for the fourth industrial revolution.
3 June 2021, 18:00 PM
Covid propels F-commerce sales by women entrepreneurs
Female entrepreneurs who conduct their business through Facebook or F-commerce are receiving a record number of orders amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic as people continue to shop from home in fear of infection.
2 June 2021, 18:00 PM
DataBird raises $3m foreign funds
DataBird, a Bangladeshi company having products across online travel, news, keyboard, eReader and lifestyle mobile applications, recently stated to have raised $3 million in foreign funding to build a messaging app resembling Facebook’s messenger, WhatsApp and China’s WeChat.
24 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Amusement parks continue struggle against Covid
The amusement park industry is on the brink of collapse as owners are struggling to pay salaries, bank loans and hefty maintenance costs amid an ongoing closure that began in April due to the recent resurgence of Covid-19.
24 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Creative book publishers in an uphill battle
Creative book publishers have been fighting an uphill battle to survive for over a year as their sales have nosedived for the pandemic that depressed demand for fiction and non-fiction among consumers.
23 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Keep money whitening scope in productive sectors
Businesspeople have urged the government not to allow any blanket black money whitening opportunity, saying the preferential tax treatment should be extended to the sectors that create jobs and have a positive impact on the economy.
20 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Run-up to Budget FY2021-22: Financial plight grows for poor, unemployed
The upcoming budget should take a wide range of fiscal measures to lift the new poor out of poverty as they have been languishing in financial plight since the pandemic hit the country more than a year ago because of inadequate support from the government, experts said.
19 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Car rentals boom amid transport restrictions
People’s desperation to visit their permanent residences for Eid celebrations brings cheers to vehicle rental services providers amidst the gloom of the pandemic.
11 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Sales pick up as Eid nears
With Eid less than a week away, smiles have returned to the face of retailers after sales picked up as customers thronged shopping centres, defying the risk of contracting the deadly coronavirus.
10 May 2021, 18:00 PM
How CEOs steering business thru pandemic
The Covid-19 pandemic has emerged as the biggest challenge for businesses worldwide and caught top executives off guard.
6 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Stable policy key to a thriving motorcycle industry
The relationship between Japan and Bangladesh is a trusted and time-tested one. Bangladesh became Japan’s biggest recipient of official development assistance in 2020. Since the Covid-19 pandemic s
5 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Digital payment: A saviour amid the pandemic
As cashless transactions turbocharged across the world during the pandemic, for Zyma Islam, a resident of the capital’s Dhanmondi, digital mode of payment turned out to be a saviour.
2 May 2021, 18:00 PM
Handset sales down 40pc since January
Sales of mobile handsets have dropped more than 40 per cent in April compared to the January level after consumers tightened their belt as they see no immediate end to the coronavirus pandemic.
26 April 2021, 18:00 PM
Home delivery boom churns out 1 lakh jobs
Online shopping, grocery and food orders, which are growing at a fast clip, have emerged as a saviour for many during the pandemic as around one lakh people received jobs in the last year to cater to the delivery juggernaut.
20 April 2021, 18:00 PM
Weavers stare at bleak Eid sales after dismal Baishakh
Weavers of clothing items such as sari and panjabi may witness their sales nosedive in the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr after most of their items aimed at Pahela Baishakh have remained unsold because of a surge in coronavirus infections and subsequent strict lockdown measures.
18 April 2021, 18:00 PM
Informal workers slip through the cracks again
Workers of the urban informal sector, which has been largely ignored despite the devastating pandemic for more than a year, are facing a fresh onslaught of adversities amid a surge in coronavirus infections.
13 April 2021, 18:00 PM
Online sales, takeaways too scanty
Restaurants owners have been pounded with yet another blow of the pandemic as the government barred dine-in services during the seven-day restrictions on movement starting from yesterday to contain the virus amid Covid-19 cases hitting record highs.
5 April 2021, 18:00 PM