Top officials of non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) requested Bangladesh Bank on Sunday to lift the existing interest cap on deposits.
The NBFI bigwigs made the request during a meeting with the central bank governor Abdur Rouf Talukder at the central bank headquarters.
When contacted, central bank spokesperson Md Serajul Islam said that the governor invited the top executives for an interaction after assuming the office.
In the meeting, the NBFI high-ups said they face problems in terms of expanding their deposit portfolio because of the existing 7% interest cap.
They opined that the banks offer deposits at the rate of 6%; but the cap is not viable enough for the NBFIs, whose cost of funds is little higher.
They requested the BB governor to lift the cap, so that the NBFIs can get more deposits, according to him.
Islam also said the governor asked the high-ups to properly follow the BB regulations in running their business. Otherwise, the central bank would act strictly.
The governor also asked the NBFI managing directors and chief executive officers to inform the central bank, if their board members unethically interfere in their operations.
The meeting was held at a time when the NBFIs were struggling to run their operations smoothly - mainly due to rise in defaulted loans and poor deposit growth.
On September 4, the BB relaxed its policy on rescheduling classified loans by the NBFIs in line with the relaxed rescheduling policy for the banks.
The new loan-rescheduling policy would allow the defaulters to repay their term loans for a period of six years for the first time, five years for the second time, and another five years for the third time.
Even the defaulters might get the rescheduling facility for the fourth time following special consideration.
For the first time rescheduling, the minimum down payment would be 4% of the total arrears or 7% of the default installments, whichever amount would be lower.
For the second time, the minimum down payment would be 5% of the total arrears or 8% of the default installments.
For the third time, the down payment would be 6% of the total arrears or 9% of the default installments.
