Five state banks to get listed by Oct
Five state-run banks are set to get listed on the stock market by September as part of the government’s move to prop up the ailing bourse that has arguably dragged investor confidence down to rock bottom. A quarter of the shares of Sonali, Agrani, Janata, Rupali and Bangladesh Development Bank (BDBL) would be offloaded on the stock market. 25 per cent is a huge amount, so we have to analyse the demand. Rupali Bank is already listed with the stock exchanges: about 10 per cent of its shares are available in the market now. The other 15 per cent would be offloaded within the next 2-3 months. BDBL’s timeline is August and Agrani’s September. Janata and Sonali would be listed within October. A committee has already been formed to work on the listing of the banks, which will be coordinated by the state-owned merchant bank Investment Corporation of Bangladesh. Stock market experts though are sceptical about the boost in morale the banks’ listing would bring given the lenders’ underwhelming performance. They fear the stocks might turn junk and add to the pile of problems the bourse is battling. Regardless, the government will facilitate what the market needs to get hale and hearty.
Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/five-state-banks-get-listed-oct-1865821
WB Group to support 1,200 women-owned businesses
Women-owned businesses in Bangladesh need better access to markets and corporate value chains to boost the country’s inclusive growth and to create more jobs, the World Bank Group said at the Corporate Connect 2020 Conference & Business Fair on Sunday. Built on the success of a just completed pilot project, the World Bank Group together with WEConnect International on the day launched a project that is expected to help 1,200 women-owned businesses connect with potential large local and multinational corporate buyers. The conference was attended by policymakers and business leaders where best practices to diversify value chains were discussed. A business fair was also organised for women entrepreneurs to build networks and access corporate procurement opportunities. The earlier pilot project provided capacity building training to over 150 women entrepreneurs and facilitated linkages with large corporations through various business networking opportunities and nearly 90 per cent of the beneficiaries reported improvements in their businesses.
Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/wb-group-to-support-1200-women-owned-businesses-1581266563
Stocks tumble amid panic sell-offs
Stocks plummeted Sunday as worried investors continued their sell-offs on large-cap issues, fearing further fall of prices. DSEX, the prime index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), went down by 64.20 points or 1.44 per cent to settle at 4,388. The core index had lost a cumulative 118 points or 2.62 per cent in the past four consecutive sessions. A bill to bring the surplus money of 61 state-owned and autonomous agencies to the state coffer was passed in parliament on Wednesday. The government on Sunday set timeline to September for listing three state-owned commercial banks (SoCBs) and offloading additional shares of another bank to the bourses, aiming to give new life to the ailing market that needs supplies of good issues. Two other indices also ended lower. The DS30 index, comprising blue chips, lost 21.40 points to finish at 1,492 and the DSE Shariah Index plunged 14.99 points to close at 1,012. Turnover, a crucial indicator of the market, also fell and amounted to 15-session low to Tk 3.62 billion, which was 3.72 per cent lower than the previous day’s turnover of Tk 3.76 billion. According to International Leasing Securities shaky investors mostly followed cautious stance based on unsatisfactory performance of major macro-economic indicators. Large-cap sectors showed negative movements with engineering sector witnessed the highest loss of 2.24 per cent, followed by power with 2.06 per cent, food 1.56 per cent, banking 1.20 per cent, financial institutions 1.16 per cent, telecom 1.06 per cent and phrma 0.72 per cent. Losers took a strong lead over the gainers as out of 356 issues traded, 271 closed lower, 43 ended higher and 42 remained unchanged on the DSE trading floor. A total number of 121,475 trades were executed in the day’s trading session with trading volume of 133 million shares and mutual fund units. The market-cap of the DSE also fell to Tk 3,363 billion, from Tk 3,404 billion in the previous session.
Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/stocks-tumble-amid-panic-sell-offs-1581266386
Yet another bank gets central bank approval
Bangladesh Bank on Sunday gave its seal of approval to the Bengal Commercial Bank Ltd, asking the lender to boost paid-up capital to Tk 5.0 billion within two years. The board of directors of the central bank took the decision at its meeting held in Dhaka. The private lender will have to apply again to the board seeking the final approval after fulfilling the conditions, the central banker added. Sources said some influential ruling party men pushed for setting up the new bank. After Awami League formed the government in 2009, nine banks were given the green light on ‘political consideration’ despite opposition from different quarters. Shimanto Bank Limited, owned by BGB Welfare Trust, was offered the licence in 2016. Two years later, the BB board gave the final approval to the Community Bank. Currently, there are 59 banks in Bangladesh, of which 41 are local private banks, nine are foreign, and nine are state-owned lenders. The two private banks will be eligible for maintaining a 5.50 per cent statutory liquidity ratio, or SLR, with the central bank instead of 13 per cent when the duo will be transformed into Islamic lenders. Currently, the required SLR is 13 per cent daily for conventional banks and 5.5 per cent for Shari’ah-based banks and Islamic Shari’ah-based banking of conventional lenders.
Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/first-page/yet-another-bank-gets-central-bank-approval-1581273838
Singer Bangladesh posts 12.50pc rise in earnings per share
The earnings per share of Singer Bangladesh Ltd rose 12.50 per cent year-on-year in 2019 thanks to record sales and continued focus on managing operating expenses. The company has reported consolidated (EPS) of Tk 10.35 for the year ended on December 31, 2019 as against Tk 9.20 in the previous year, according to an official disclosure on Sunday. Its consolidated net asset value (NAV) per share of Tk 32.02 for the year ended on December 31, 2019 which was Tk 23.18 in the same period last year. The company’s consolidated net operating cash flow per share stood at Tk 13.59 for the year ended on December 31, 2019 as against negative Tk 4.66 for the same period of the previous year. The board of directors of the company has recommended 77 per cent cash dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2019. The board has also decided to increase authorised capital to Tk 2.50 billion from existing Tk 1.0 billion, according to the disclosure. The annual general meeting will be held on May 13 at 10am at Spectra Convention Center in Dhaka. The record date is on March 9. Each share of the company, which was listed on the Dhaka bourse in 1983, closed at Tk 163.70 on Sunday, losing 3.70 per cent over the previous day. The company’s share traded between Tk 156.40 and Tk 279.90 in the last one year. The company disbursed 30 per cent stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2018. The company’s paid-up capital is Tk 997.03 million and authorised capital Tk 1.0 billion while total number of securities is 99.70 billion. The sponsor-directors own 57 per cent stake in the company, while institutional investors own 19.27 per cent, foreign investors 5.36 per cent and the general public 18.37 per cent as of December 31, 2019
Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/singer-bangladesh-posts-1250pc-rise-in-earnings-per-share-1581266482
Strongest Islamic Retail Bank in Asia 2019
Dr. Sofiza Azmi , CEO of Cambridge International Financial Advisory (IFA), handed over the ‘Strongest Islamic Retail Bank in Asia 2019’ award to Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) Chairman Professor Md. Nazmul Hassan, Ph.D at a programme recently. IBBL Managing Director and CEO Md. Mahbub ul Alam was present at the function that also awarded the bank the `Most Innovative Islamic Retail Bank in Bangladesh 2019` award
Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/trade-market/strongest-islamic-retail-bank-in-asia-2019-1581265828
DSE gets new MD
Kazi Sanaul Hoq joined Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) as managing director yesterday. The board of directors decided on the appointment in its 945th board meeting on January 9. The appointment proposal was sent to the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission for final approval the same day. Hoq attained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from the University of Dhaka and started his career as a senior officer in the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) in 1984.
Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/dse-gets-new-md-1865800
Local and Global Stock Indices *
Index Name | Close Value | Value Change | Percentage Change |
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DSEX | 4,388.75609 | ↓ 64.21 | ↓ 1.44 % |
DJIA | 29,102.51 | ↓ 277.26 | ↓ 0.94 % |
FTSE100 | 7,466.70 | ↓ 38.09 | ↓ 0.51 % |
Nikkei 225 | 23,743.51 | ↓ 84.47 | ↓ 0.35 % |
World Commodities *
Commodity | Close Value | Value Change | Percentage Change |
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Crude Oil (WTI) | $ 50.18 | ↓ 0.14 | ↓ 0.28 % |
Crude Oil (Brent) | $ 54.32 | ↓ 0.15 | ↓ 0.28 % |
Gold Spot | $ 1,570.60 | ↑ 0.16 | ↑ 0.01 % |
Major Currencies Exchange Rates Movement in Last Seven Days *
Exchange Rates |
---|
USD 1 | BDT 83.2796 |
GBP 1 | BDT 107.258 |
EUR 1 | BDT 91.1362 |
INR 1 | BDT 1.16288 |
*CURRENCIES AND COMMODITIES ARE TAKEN FROM BLOOMBERG.<