Friday, 10 October, 2025
The Association of Bankers, Bangladesh (ABB), a platform of chief executives of commercial banks, has urged greater flexibility in setting service fees and called for higher loan limits for housing and car purchases.
ABB representatives presented their proposals on Monday at a meeting chaired by Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Ahsan H. Mansur, with senior central bank officials also in attendance. The association suggested raising the maximum home loan limit to Tk 5 crore and increasing the loan-to-value ratio for cars and flats to 90 percent.
According to central bank sources, ABB had submitted these proposals in writing over several months, prompting Bangladesh Bank to convene the meeting. While the central bank agreed in principle to some suggestions, others were rejected to safeguard customer interests. Final decisions are expected to be communicated soon via circular.
Other proposals from ABB included digitising all transactions to reduce delays, simplifying the process for banks to raise capital through Tier-2 bonds, and introducing more flexible classification and provisioning policies for loans to the Cottage, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (CMSME) sector.
ABB also requested that banks be allowed to write off loans that have been non-performing for one year and sought additional time to adjust the excess portion of revolving loans, with potential renewal allowed until December.
The association further sought the removal of fixed service charges, allowing banks to determine their own fees, and full permanent address verification using national identity cards during account opening.
Besides, it proposed raising the home loan limit to Tk 5 crore, increasing the loan-to-value ratio to 90 percent, removing the loan limit for purchasing hybrid cars with up to 90 percent financing, and setting maximum limits of Tk 40 lakh for personal loans and Tk 50 lakh for credit cards.
ABB Chairman and City Bank MD Masrur Arefin, along with managing directors of several banks, including Abul Kashem Md Shirin of Dutch-Bangla Bank, Mohammad Ali of Pubali Bank, Hasan O Rashid of Prime Bank, Ali Reza Iftekhar of Eastern Bank, Syed Mahbubur Rahman of MTB, Sohel RK Hossain of Bank Asia, and Naser Ezaz Bijoy, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, among others, attended the meeting.
Comments
The Association of Bankers, Bangladesh (ABB), a platform of chief executives of commercial banks, has urged greater flexibility in setting service fees and called for higher loan limits for housing and car purchases.
ABB representatives presented their proposals on Monday at a meeting chaired by Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Ahsan H. Mansur, with senior central bank officials also in attendance. The association suggested raising the maximum home loan limit to Tk 5 crore and increasing the loan-to-value ratio for cars and flats to 90 percent.
According to central bank sources, ABB had submitted these proposals in writing over several months, prompting Bangladesh Bank to convene the meeting. While the central bank agreed in principle to some suggestions, others were rejected to safeguard customer interests. Final decisions are expected to be communicated soon via circular.
Other proposals from ABB included digitising all transactions to reduce delays, simplifying the process for banks to raise capital through Tier-2 bonds, and introducing more flexible classification and provisioning policies for loans to the Cottage, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (CMSME) sector.
ABB also requested that banks be allowed to write off loans that have been non-performing for one year and sought additional time to adjust the excess portion of revolving loans, with potential renewal allowed until December.
The association further sought the removal of fixed service charges, allowing banks to determine their own fees, and full permanent address verification using national identity cards during account opening.
Besides, it proposed raising the home loan limit to Tk 5 crore, increasing the loan-to-value ratio to 90 percent, removing the loan limit for purchasing hybrid cars with up to 90 percent financing, and setting maximum limits of Tk 40 lakh for personal loans and Tk 50 lakh for credit cards.
ABB Chairman and City Bank MD Masrur Arefin, along with managing directors of several banks, including Abul Kashem Md Shirin of Dutch-Bangla Bank, Mohammad Ali of Pubali Bank, Hasan O Rashid of Prime Bank, Ali Reza Iftekhar of Eastern Bank, Syed Mahbubur Rahman of MTB, Sohel RK Hossain of Bank Asia, and Naser Ezaz Bijoy, CEO of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, among others, attended the meeting.
Comments
