Bankers' assocs warn banks against buying remittances at higher rates
The Association of Bankers, Bangladesh (ABB) and the Bangladesh Foreign Exchange Dealers' Association (Bafeda) have warned banks not to buy remittance dollars at rates higher than the prescribed rate.
Earlier, the ABB and Bafeda decided together that remittances would be collected at Tk107 per dollar.
In the joint meeting of the ABB and Bafeda on 18 January this year, a number of managing directors of banks complained that a number of banks were collecting remittances at rates higher than the prescribed rate.
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A source present at the meeting said almost everyone at the meeting agreed that several banks were collecting remittances at higher rates, and the organisations warned the banks not to do so.
On condition of anonymity, the managing director of a private bank told TBS that the ABB and Bafeda confirmed that some banks are giving higher rates for remittance dollars, so the issue was raised in the meeting. Besides, a letter was sent to the managing directors and CEOs of the member banks in this regard.
The letter issued on 19 January said, "Despite our requests several times, some banks are still procuring remittances at a rate over Tk107 per US dollar, violating Bafeda-ABBs joint decision. As a result, the complying banks are experiencing irreparable damages and such activities of the non-compliant banks have been creating a severe obstacle to inter-bank forex market discipline development. It is to be mentioned that such violation is also not acceptable to the central bank, so it cannot be allowed to continue.
"All AD [authorised dealer] banks must comply with the decisions taken or to be taken in the joint meeting of Bafeda and ABB. Any violation to the above by any bank will be viewed and dealt with strictly by the regulator. In that case, Bafeda and ABB shall not be with the non-compliant bank in future."
Selim RF Hussain, ABB chairman and the managing director of Brac Bank, told TBS, "In the meeting, all the banks were reminded about collecting remittance at the fixed rate. All of them should try to comply with it – that is what was said in the meeting."
