Public Debt Bill 2022 came with a provision mentioning a maximum six-month prison term or a Tk1 lakh fine or both for providing wrong information while buying savings certificates.
On September 1, the parliament passed the Public Debt Bill 2022 and on September 7, the bill came into effect immediately after a government-issued gazette.
Meanwhile, since this new law has come into effect, the sale of savings certificates has already started to decrease, said the concerned individuals.
The latest data released from the National Savings Directorate show that the sale of savings certificates dropped drastically in July, the first month of the current fiscal year.
The officials of the directorate said, after the Public Debt Act 2022, these low selling statistics may tighten more strongly in August and September.
The Finance Division has designed the new law with a precise guarantee against the debt taken by the government from people that they would get back the deposited money anyhow.
The old law did not define fines for law violations, whereas the new law includes 40 sections for a sustainable debt policy and planning, risk assessment, and the increase of government duties.
The law states that, if anyone invests in savings certificates and does not withdraw the interest within six years, the government will not bear any liabilities.
The law also states that a court can't hear charges brought about by anyone other than the Bangladesh Bank or the National Savings Directorate.
A new provision has been incorporated into it for running a sharia-based deposit system alongside the normal deposit system.
Drop in savings certificates’ sales continues
The sale of national saving certificates, which was declining since last year, almost hit rock bottom in July of FY23.
In July, the net sale of savings certificates stood at only Tk393 crore, which was Tk2,104 crore in the same month of FY22.
The National Savings Directorate's data analysis shows that investment in saving certificates fell by 81.32% or Tk1,711 crore year-on-year (YoY).
According to Bangladesh Bank data, net investment in saving certificates in June this year was Tk1,749 crore.
That means within a month, net sales fell by 77.53% or Tk1,356 crore.