BB frees up Tk 3,000cr for farmers, micro enterprises

The Bangladesh Bank yesterday unveiled a financial package of Tk 3,000 crore for underprivileged farmers, professionals and micro enterprises to keep them afloat.

Marginal businesses and farmers with no access to banks and non-bank financial institutions will be allowed to get loans from the revolving fund at 9 per cent interest rate.

Microfinance institutes (MFIs) with certificates from the Microcredit Regulatory Authority can give out the loans.

Under the package, the BB will initially provide the fund to banks at 1 per cent interest, which they will lend to MFIs at 3.5 per cent interest. The MFIs will be allowed to charge a maximum of 9 per cent interest to borrowers.

MFIs now charge about 25 per cent interest on their clients as their operational cost is too much high. But they will have to disburse loans at 9 per cent under the latest package, said a BB official.

Small businesses like roadside tea stalls can get loans, the highest amount of which would be Tk 75,000.

If the small businesses are owned by more than five persons, the loan ceiling would go up to Tk 3 lakh.

The loans must be paid back within a year.

But MFIs will be allowed to disburse loans ranging from Tk 10 lakh to Tk 30 lakh to micro enterprises and their repayment duration would be two years.

Farmers, underprivileged women, low-income people can also get loans. No defaulter will get a loan from the revolving fund.

The duration of the revolving scheme is three years and the volume of the fund will be widened if required, said the BB notice.

In another move, the BB yesterday asked banks to release the required foreign exchange to Bangladeshi nationals stranded abroad for the travel freeze brought on by the global coronavirus pandemic.

The BB also asked banks to take the same measures for those who are getting treatment abroad.

Banks will have to follow the instruction until June 30.