37 private banks to donate Tk 140.8cr to PM’s relief fund

Thirty-seven private banks will donate Tk 140.80 crore to the prime minister's Relief and Welfare Fund in an effort to help the government mitigate the health and financial risk which stems from the coronavirus pandemic.

Older banks will provide Tk 5 crore each while nine fourth generation lenders will contribute Tk 20 lakh apiece to the welfare fund.

On March 29, the Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB), a forum of private bank sponsors, urged various financial institutions to provide the funds within March 31.

The forum will hand over the funds within the next week, said a bank's senior executive, who is well aware of  the matter.

This will help the government accelerate its ongoing fight against the coronavirus outbreak, he said.

Besides, four state-run commercial banks -- Sonali, Janata, Agrani and Rupali -- have also taken the same measure.

The aforementioned commercial banks will each donate Tk 1.25 crore to the fund.

"State-run banks have already completed all measures to donate to the fund. We will hand over the money at a convenient time next week," said Mohammad Shams-Ul Islam, managing director of Agrani Bank.

Agrani will also provide 5,000 personal protective equipment to the welfare fund for distribution, he added.