Defaulted loan around 25-30pc, most disbursed after 2017: BB governor
The share of defaulted loans could reach 25-30 per cent, Bangladesh Bank governor Ahsan H Mansur informed the interim government chief adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus on Sunday.
He further said that most of the loans were disbursed after 2017.
The central bank governor was addressing an event where a White Paper on the state of the economy during the rule of the ousted Awami League government was presented to the chief adviser.
The committee, headed by Debapriya Bhattacharya, submitted the report to Muhammad Yunus at the latter’s Tejgaon office in Dhaka today.
Ahsan H Mansur said, “We have been examining the financial health of the country. The defaulted loans may reach 25-30 per cent in the coming days. Currently, the amount is 12.5 per cent, the amount would increase to 15 per cent, then would 17 per cent and gradually it 30 per cent. These loans have been defaulted earlier. Now it will be added to the calculation.”
The Bangladesh Bank governor stated that they had already taken initiatives to bring down the defaulted loans.
He said that half or Tk 2.5 trillion of the defaulted loans that would be in the coming days would belong to several large conglomerates, including S Alam and former land minister Saifuzzaman. Those loans were distributed after 2017. The money was taken as loan from banks and siphoned off.
“Our regulatory agencies have to step up their monitoring. This has already started. The value of assets of the banks are being checked by the global institutions. This will begin on 11 December. Initially, 12 banks will be audited, then another 20 banks will be audited, which will reveal the actual financial status of the banks.”
Following this, a political decision will be required regarding the future of those banks, the central bank governor said. “We definitely will take steps to protect the depositors. Protection will be given to the deposits. Banks have been provided the funds. Hopefully, the trust of the clients will be restored.”
Ahsan H Mansur further said a law is being promulgated to take decisions on the banking sector. Besides, global agencies are being used to bring back the laundered money. But this is a long process.