Revenue collection up by 8.92pc during July-February period

The revenue collection by the National Board of Revenue (NBR) during the July-February period of the current fiscal year (FY23) witnessed an 8.92 per cent growth from income tax, VAT and customs with a collection of Tk 1.96 trillion. The revenue collection by the NBR during the same period of the last fiscal year (FY22) was Tk 1.79 trillion, reports BSS. Revenue board officials said out of the overall revenue collection of Tk 1.96 trillion during this eight-month period, Tk 591.98 billion will come from customs, Tk 764.01 billion from VAT and Tk 604.37 billion from income tax and travel tax. This overall revenue collection is, however, lower than the revenue collection target of Tk 2.19 trillion during this eight-month period. The NBR officials said that the revenue collection during the July-February period of the last fiscal year (FY22) from customs or import and export duty was Tk 567.26 billion which increased to Tk 591.98 billion during this period having a growth of 4.36 per cent.

Source: https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/economy/bangladesh/revenue-collection-up-by-892pc-during-july-february-period

Foreign banks see spike in deposits

Foreign banks operating in Bangladesh registered an 8.57 per cent growth in deposits in the October-December quarter of 2022, the highest since 2018, as many savers shifted their funds from local banks amid a confidence crisis. Nine multinational lenders logged Tk 73,980 crore in deposits in the fourth quarter, up from Tk 68,143 crore in the third quarter, according to the Quarterly Scheduled Banks Statistics released by the Bangladesh Bank yesterday. On a year-on-year basis, the banks recorded a 14 per cent growth in deposits even though several well-known multinational banks offer lower interest rates on deposits compared to their local competitors. “Due to the perceived high-risk around a few local banks and financial institutions, cautious savers preferred to park their deposits with foreign banks despite lower returns,” said Mamun Rashid, a former CEO of Citibank, NA Bangladesh. State-owned commercial banks logged the second-highest growth in deposit collection followed by private banks. Government-owned banks witnessed their deposit grow by 0.96 per cent year-on-year to Tk 401,032 crore in the October-December quarter. Private banks, including Islamic ones, saw money parked by savers grow 0.22 per cent. Islamic banks lost Tk 11,426 crore in deposits as a section of savers withdrew funds amid a confidence erosion in the wake of allegations of loan irregularities in some shariah-based banks, according to the October-December quarterly report on Islamic banking of the central bank.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/economy/news/foreign-banks-see-spike-deposits-3276576

Romana re-elected Bank Asia Securities chair

Romana Rouf Chowdhury has been re-elected chairperson of Bank Asia Securities Limited in its 12th annual general meeting, said a press release. She is a director of Bank Asia Limited. She is also managing director of Sea Natural Food Limited, Sea Fishers Limited and Sea Resources Group. She is also a director of various sister concerns of Rangs Group. She obtained her MBA from Florida Institute of Technology and completed her graduation from BRAC University. She has also completed executive education from Harvard Business School and Columbia Business School. — New Age

Source: https://www.newagebd.net/article/197329/romana-re-elected-bank-asia-securities-chair