The cabinet yesterday approved the draft of an amended act which would allow Bangladesh Bank to seek information on any foreign asset owned by expatriate Bangladeshis.
The draft of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) 2015 also included new provisions for currency transaction of Bangladeshi citizens and foreign citizens living in Bangladesh.
The draft was approved yesterday at a cabinet meeting, presided by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Talking to journalists after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said it was essential to amend the FERA to make it time-befitting, as the transaction of foreign currency and bullion along with international trade have increased in the last few years.
He added that the existing foreign exchange regulation act was almost the same as the laws passed in undivided India during the British rule.
Musharraf also said minor amendments were made to the act in 1976 and 2003, while the current account transaction convertibility was made in 1994, and the exchange rate was made market-based in 2003.
The Bank and Financial Institutions Division placed the draft before the cabinet committee meeting for approval yesterday, the secretary said.
The Bank Division formed a committee, headed by the executive director of Bangladesh Bank, which reviewed foreign exchange regulation acts of neighbouring countries before making its recommendations.
The draft was prepared in accordance with recommendations from several inter-ministerial meetings, but surprisingly no public opinion submitted through the website was considered, said Secretary Musharraf.
The major amendments to the existing act includes new provisions for the overview of foreign currency transaction by Bangladeshi citizens as well as foreign citizens living in Bangladesh.
The definitions of export and import of goods, currency transaction, current accounts and capital accounts have been expanded under the draft amendment, while a new definition of electronic transaction has also been added.
The secretary also said the meaning of the currency has now expanded as foreign currency transaction was also being made through electric system.
Regarding the central bank’s administrative measures, Musharraf said the Bangladesh Bank would take the measures by penalising stakeholders of illegal foreign exchange transactions.
Under the amendment, foreign currency firms would not have to take permission from Bangladesh Bank for setting up office or appointing agents, but would need to seek permission from other authorities concerned, he added.
