Bangladeshi Banks, Financial Institutions Asked To Submit SME Loan Targets

Dhaka, Bangladesh (AHN) - The central bank of Bangladesh on Tuesday asked commercial banks and non-banking financial institutions to submit their annual loan disbursement targets for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The Bangladesh Bank (BB), the country's central bank, has taken the move aiming to increase financing in the SME sectors that will help create more job opportunities and improve the country's overall economic situation, officials said.

"We will monitor such loan disbursement performance of the commercial banks and financial institutions on a quarterly basis," Nazrul Huda, deputy governor of the BB, told a press briefing at the central bank.

Banks will have to allocate a minimum of 40 percent of the total SME fund for small entrepreneurs. The remainder of the fund will be reserved for medium size entrepreneurs, according to the new directives.

"The banks will have to create a dedicated desk for SME sector," the central bank said in a circular.

The BB has taken a series of measures, including setting up SME service centers, to strengthen financing in the SMEs sector, they added.