Policy rate hiked again as inflation stays high

The central bank yesterday raised the repo rate by 50 basis points to step up its fight against the persisting higher inflation and increased rates that will make loans costlier and give better returns to savers. Now, the policy rate will be 7.75 percent, which will be effective from today. Yesterday’s increase in the repo rate is the eighth hike in the past 19 months as inflation has kept surging. The repo rate is the rate at which the Bangladesh Bank lends money to commercial banks and financial institutions. The banking regulator also increased the margin by 25 basis points to 3.75 percent that banks can add to the SMART (Six Months Moving Average Rate of Treasury Bills) rate when extending loans. Thus, the maximum lending rate of banks will be 11.18 percent from today because the SMART rate stands at 7.43 percent.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/policy-rate-hiked-again-inflation-stays-high-3479581

Sino-Malaysian firm to invest $14.55 million in Bepza EZ

Sino-Malaysian firm Vernon & Oliver Furniture Company Limited will invest $14.55 million at the economic zone of Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (Bepza) to establish a mattress manufacturing industry. The company will produce 1.8 lakh pieces of spring mattress and foam mattress annually and will create job opportunities for 600 Bangladeshi nationals, the Bepza said in a statement today. The Bepza authorities have so far approved 24 enterprises, today’s mattress factory, to establish industries in Bepza economic zone and most of them will produce diversified products. The total proposed investment of these enterprises is $510.2 million.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/sino-malaysian-firm-invest-1455-million-bepza-ez-3479351\

 44 winners receive Mastercard Excellence Awards

Forty-four winners, including several banks and financial institutions, received the MasterCard Excellence Awards 2023 based on their performance and contribution to the financial ecosystem. The winners of the Mastercard Excellence Awards 2023 were announced during a high-profile ceremony in the national capital. The event also marked the 10th anniversary of Mastercard’s Bangladesh office. Being operational in Bangladesh since 1991, Mastercard became the first global payments operator to set up its office in Bangladesh in 2013. In these years, the company has forged many collaborations with various stakeholders to strengthen the country’s digital ecosystem by transforming the payments industry through best-in-class products and solutions. The company has also been committed to furthering financial inclusion and has worked with the government, industry, and social organizations to take digital solutions to the communities at the grassroots. Awards were distributed in 16 categories like xcellence in Mastercard Business (Merchant)- POS 2022-23, Excellence in Mastercard Business (Merchant)- Online 2022-23, Excellence in Mastercard Digital Business 2022-23, Excellence in Financial Inclusion 2022-23, Excellence in Mastercard Business (Innovation) 2022-23, and Excellence in Mastercard Business Growth 2022-23 and others.

Source: https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/corporates/44-winners-receive-mastercard-excellence-awards-746178