Govt caps savings tools investment

The finance ministry today fixed the maximum limit of national savings certificates that people would be able to purchase individually and under joint names.

According to a notification of the Internal Resources Division, a person will not be able to invest more than Tk 50 lakh in three savings instruments: the five-year Bangladesh savings certificate, the three-month profit-bearing savings certificate, and the family savings certificate.

Under joint names, the highest amount of investment in the three savings schemes will be Tk 1 crore, a cap aimed at discouraging the wealthy from putting in too much money in the high-interest-bearing savings instruments offered by the government.

The notification becomes effective immediately, said the IRD.

At present, an individual can buy family savings certificates up to Tk 45 lakh, and it is up to Tk 30 lakh each for the three-month certificate and the five-year Bangladesh savings certificate.

The move comes amid a surge in the sales of savings certificates as depositors rushed to benefit from the higher interest benefit against the backdrop of the lower interest rate on deposits by banks.

Net sales of savings certificates soared nearly thrice to Tk 15,642 crore in the July–October period of the fiscal year, data from the central bank showed.

The sales amount was 78 percent of Tk 20,000 crore that the government has targeted to borrow from the public through savings schemes.