Islami, Krishi, and BRAC Bank maintain positions in remittance inflows

Islami Bank and Bangladesh Krishi Bank have maintained their first and second positions, respectively, in terms of remittance inflows at the end of the first quarter of the ongoing 2026–27 financial year.

Islami Bank has long held the top spot in receiving remittances, while Krishi Bank has climbed to the second position over the past few years.

Both banks had also finished the previous financial year in first and second place. They have sustained this strong performance through the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

This information emerges from an analysis of Bangladesh Bank’s statistics on inward remittances.

Based on data from the three months spanning July to September, Prothom Alo compiled a list of the top 10 banks facilitating remittance inflows into the country.

The list reveals that private sector BRAC Bank follows Islami Bank and Bangladesh Krishi Bank in third place. State-owned Agrani Bank and private sector Trust Bank hold the fourth and fifth positions, respectively.

Meanwhile, Dutch-Bangla Bank, City Bank, Dhaka Bank, Mutual Trust Bank, and Eastern Bank occupy sixth to tenth places, in that order.

According to Bangladesh Bank data, out of the top 10 remittance-receiving banks in the country, two are state-owned while the remaining eight belong to the private sector. Together, these 10 banks brought in approximately US$5.88 billion in remittances during the first three months of the current fiscal year.

Total inward remittances for the country during this first quarter stood at US$8.59 billion. That means, 68 per cent of the total remittances received during the first three months of the financial year were processed through these 10 banks.

Data from Bangladesh Bank indicates that, compared to the previous financial year, two new banks have secured spots in the top 10 list during the first quarter of the current fiscal year. They are Dhaka Bank and Mutual Trust Bank.

With their entry, two banks from the previous financial year's top 10 list have been excluded—namely, state-owned Janata Bank and Pubali Bank.

At the end of the last financial year, Islami Bank also topped the list of the 10 banks bringing the highest volume of remittances into the country.

While Krishi Bank held the second place, BRAC Bank third, Trust Bank fourth, and Agrani Bank fifth spot; sixth to tenth positions were occupied by Janata Bank, City Bank, Dutch-Bangla Bank, Eastern Bank, and Pubali Bank, respectively.

This demonstrates that several banks have shifted positions by the end of the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

Trust Bank, which was in fourth position at the end of the last financial year, now sits in fifth place at the end of the first quarter. Trust Bank and Agrani Bank have effectively swapped places.

Janata Bank, previously in sixth position, has fallen out of the list altogether, allowing Dutch-Bangla Bank to move up from eighth to sixth place. City Bank's position remains unchanged in seventh place, while Eastern Bank has moved down to tenth from ninth place at the end of last year.

At the close of the previous financial year, total remittance inflows into the country stood at US$35.59 billion, with more than two-thirds—or 71 per cent—channelled through the aforementioned 10 banks.

When approached for comment, Ahsan Zaman Chowdhury, Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Trust Bank, told Prothom Alo, “When there is strong demand for dollars in the market, banks are more proactive in gathering remittances from overseas. When demand slackens, that drive decreases somewhat. This is because banks are reluctant to incur the costs associated with bringing in dollars unless there is sufficient demand. This was precisely the case for our bank.”

“Owing to lower demand for dollars during the first three months of the current financial year, we scaled back our focus on remittances, which led to the shift in our position. However, demand for dollars has picked up again this month, and our bank is actively working to bring in foreign remittances. We hope to regain our former position by the end of the year,” he added.