Berger to borrow $60m from its foreign parent company

Berger Paints Bangladesh Ltd has decided to enter an agreement with its foreign parent company J&N Investments (Asia) Limited to avail $60 million in loans, according to a public disclosure of the company.

The loan will facilitate the opening of letters of credit for raw material imports by Berger Paints Bangladesh and will be disbursed in phases based on business requirements.

"The move comes as a part of our commitment to give a hand to the country's foreign currency reserve," said Sazzad Rahim Chowdhury, director and chief financial officer at Berger Paints Bangladesh.

"We will build a foreign currency reserve out of the loan, to pay our import bills," he said, adding that the shareholder's loan would help smoothen the company's imports as well.

The board regulation for the planned loan agreement was approved on Wednesday and the company would apply to the Bangladesh Investment Development and Regulatory Authority for approval.

The interest rate and repayment period would be determined by the regulatory authorities during their approval, according to Sazzad Rahim Chowdhury.

Berger Paints Bangladesh is the leading company in the steadily growing local paints market, and its parent company is based in the United Kingdom.