Govt invests Tk 113.1m from universal pension fund

The government has initially invested Taka 113.1 million in 10-year treasury bonds from the universal pension fund.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on Sunday inaugurated the activities at a press conference at the Finance Ministry conference room.

In the presence of Finance Secretary Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder, National Pension Authority Chairman Kabirul Ezdani Khan officially handed over the treasury bonds to the finance minister.

At the press conference, it was informed that approximately 15,000 people have registered for the pension scheme by paying subscriptions, resulting in a total deposit of Tk 125.4 million as of Sunday.

Out of this amount, Tk 113.1 million has been invested in 10-year treasury bonds.

In his speech, Mustafa Kamal said the subscriptions of all the participants in the pension scheme will be deposited as a 'universal pension fund'.
National Pension Authority will invest the money in safer and less risky sources, he added.

He said that treasury bonds will be given priority in terms of investment.
Referring to the amount of South Korea's national pension fund of US$700 to $800 billion, he expressed hope that a strong pension fund will be developed in Bangladesh in the future.

Speaking at the programme the finance minister further stated that the economy of Bangladesh is moving in the right direction despite different external challenges.

He noted the recent opinion of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that Bangladesh’s economy remained on the right track and kept the growth rate of the country around 6 per cent.

Earlier this month, the IMF lowered Bangladesh’s economic growth to 6 per cent from 6.5 per cent, while the World Bank lowered Bangladesh’s economic growth projection to 5.65 per cent in the fiscal year of 2023-24 from 6.2 per cent.

The finance minister said, “We will say once again that we have to keep pace with the economy of the whole world. We cannot run our economy alone. Everyone should move forward together.”

When a war stops on one side, another war starts on the other side,  the finance minister lamented. "Now you tell (journalists) how to control the market?"