Bangladesh Bank has set a target of Tk88,753 crore financing for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) this year, which is 19% higher than the last year.
The target has been fixed for the bank and non-bank financial institutions.
In 2013, the SME financing target was Tk74,187 crore. According to the data as of September, 84% of the target was reached.
On the basis of December figures, Bangladesh Bank predicts the total amount would exceed the target.
The inflow of SME financing increased this year due to lack of demand of loans from large enterprises.
Earlier, Bangladesh Bank advised the banks to focus on SME and agriculture sectors to increase their credit flow as political unrest kept big investors from borrowing.
As SME financing was robust last year, the central bank has raised the target this year, said a Bangladesh Bank executive.
Bangladesh Bank has already instructed the banks and non-bank financial institutions to lend to SMEs on the basis of bank-customer relations.
The central bank also relaxed loan rescheduling requirements for the SME sector.
“Bangladesh Bank will monitor utilisation of the facilities being given,” said Masum Patwary, general manager of SME Department at the central bank.
