Privatisation of 4 NCBs not in one go: BB governor

Bangladesh Bank Governor Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday brushed aside any possibility of privatising all the four nationalised commercial banks (NCBs) in one go as part of the on going financial sector reform programme.

"It would not be rational to do it altogether," he told the news agency in an interview. He said the government has been studying the possibilities of privatising the NCBs to make them "more efficient and financially healthy."

Ahmed's three-year contract ended Monday but the government has extended his tenure as governor of the country's central bank until April 30, 2005.

The government has already decided to divest the state-run Rupali Bank and appointed a financial adviser for the bank to look into its affairs to pave the way for its privatisation.

Ahmed said the fate of other NCBs will be decided in the light of the experiences from privatising the Rupali Bank. "If it works out, possibly we could go for privatising the other NCBs," he said.

But the government, meanwhile, appointed separate management teams for the other NCBs -- Sonali, Janata and Agrani -- to help them improve their efficiency and financial health.

"It's not important whether they go private or not... what's important is that the NCBs must improve their service standards up to the expectation of the customers and businesses," said the BB governor.

He pointed out that the NCBs' performance must improve if they have to survive in the face of aggressive banking by the new generation private sector banks.

Ahmed was asked how he felt managing the affairs of the country's central bank during his three-year tenure. "It was challenging and sometimes frustrating as well," he replied.