Bangladesh Bank (BB) yesterday relaxed rules for banks regarding appointment of former bankers as directors of the lenders, according to a circular.

Banks and non-bank financial institutions should change their attitude towards lending to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and ease access to finance, Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said yesterday.

Pragati Life Insurance has settled Tk 189.68 crore claims in the first half of 2023, an increase of 25.92 percent from the same period last year.

The stock price of Himadri Ltd, listed with the SME board of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, soared 60-fold in the last four months, prompting an investigation from the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC).

The government has announced the second spawning ground of hilsa and placed a ban on catching the fish during its peak spawning period in an effort to increase production, according to a notification by the fisheries and livestock ministry.

Teetering on the verge of a crisis, Jamuna Life Insurance Company Limited has been prescribed some remedies by the insurance regulator, including preparation of a business action plan at the earliest for the next three years. 

A new tea auction centre began operations in Bangladesh’s northwest bordering district of Panchagarh yesterday, making it the third establishment of its kind following the country’s first in Chattogram and the second in Sreemangal.

Almost all major foreign currencies like the European Union’s euro, British pound sterling, Chinese renminbi, Japanese yen and Indian rupee are following in the footsteps of the US dollar in becoming stronger against the local currency. 

The construction materials industry of Bangladesh has registered massive growth over the past decade as some mega projects are providing ample opportunity for capacity building and ensuring world-class products, according to industry insiders.

Japan’s factory activity shrank for a third straight month in August, a survey showed on Friday, as manufacturers were squeezed by cost pressures from raw material inflation and rising wages.

Analysts and economists yesterday recommended ensuring environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG), technological advancement and ethics in every stage of development activities to attain its sustainability. 

I became a management committee (mancom) member of an Australian bank quite early. My climbing to the top role in the local office of a leading USA-based bank was also relatively early. In those days, a CEO was kind of a CEO, no matter whether you drive change or not. Almost always the boss’s man and focusing on upward management. 

The opening of an elevated expressway in Dhaka yesterday will save time and money from now on, enabling businesses to enhance their competitiveness and boost exports, said exporters yesterday. 

The growth of the country’s packaging industry is in a slow lane due to the persisting economic uncertainty and the impacts of the price hike of the US dollar, gas and electricity, according to industry people. 

IT exports from Bangladesh have fallen for the first time in five years, which is an ominous sign for the government’s export diversification efforts as the country is failing to produce big IT firms.

The history of indigo farming under British rule is still cause for indignation among many in Bangladesh as it reminds of the tyranny faced in having to cultivate the plant in place of food crops.

Banks in Bangladesh have decided to enforce a uniform exchange rate of the US dollar from next week with a view to moving away from multiple prices of the American greenback blamed for the ongoing foreign currency instability.

Businesses of the US want to invest more in agriculture and service sectors in Bangladesh as the country is expected to be the 9th largest consumer market globally by 2030, stated a visiting American business delegation yesterday. 

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has asked banks to send account details of former Bangladesh Bank deputy governor SK Sur Chowdhury and his spouse and daughter as a part of an investigation in a tax evasion case against the three. 

The Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation (BHBFC) has secured first position in the Annual Performance Agreement (APA) for financial year 2022-23.