Traders now allowed to export from another country

The Bangladesh Bank has announced a “Merchanting Trade” policy which will allow traders to buy goods and services from another country and export those to a third country in a bid to diversify exports. The Foreign Exchange Policy Department of Bangladesh Bank issued a circular in this regard on Wednesday, stating, “In accordance with the export policy in force, a trade for which goods or services procured from a country, are shipped or delivered directly to a third country is defined as ‘merchanting trade’. To facilitate transactional services by ADs [authorised dealers] to their ‘merchanting, trade’ customers, it has been decided to formulate a set of operational guidelines.” This type of business has been gaining popularity worldwide, but specific policies were necessary for it in Bangladesh. The new policy will allow export trade to expand and earn a lot of foreign currency. Banks are restricted to issue any forms of payment undertaking, commitments or acceptance for the credits. The difference between inward receipts and outward payments, including charges, shall be reasonably satisfactory for meeting local expenses and profits.

Source: https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/traders-now-allowed-export-another-country-496414

MFS transactions drop over 5%, but card use rises 2%

Transactions through mobile financial services registered a fall of more than 5% or Tk5,124 crore in July because economic activities went slow after Eid-Ul-Azha, one of the biggest festivals of the Muslims. Eid was celebrated on 10 July and Eid-centric activities took place mostly towards the later part of June. The amount of money transacted through MFS platforms dropped to Tk89,169 crore in July from Tk94,293 crore a month before, according to the latest Bangladesh Bank data. On the other hand, card transactions rose by 2% to Tk38,461 crore in the same month, while foreign currency transactions stood at Tk442 crore, with more people preferring credit cards in foreign travels amid a crisis of cash dollars. The number of card holders stood at 3.24 crore as of July. Customers carried out Tk25,780 crore cash-in transactions, Tk26,253 crore cash-out, Tk24,353 crore person-to-person transfer, Tk3,187 crore salaries and allowances of different organisations, Tk2,948 crore merchant payment and Tk1,859 crore utility bill payment, according to the central bank report on 13 MFS providers, including bKash and Nagad. At the end of July, the number of MFS accounts stood at more than 18.11 crore – 10.43 crore male and 7.64 crore female, while the number of agents was 15.26 lakh.

Source: https://www.tbsnews.net/economy/banking/mfs-transactions-drop-over-5-card-use-rises-2-496418

BB issues new 10-taka, 20-taka notes

Tk 10 and Tk 20 denomination notes signed by Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder will be issued from the central bank’s Motijheel office in the city beginning from today (Thursday). Later the notes will be issued from BB’s other branches too. Alongside the new notes, the old notes will also remain valid.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/trade-market/bb-issues-new-10-taka-20-taka-notes-today-1663172898