The bank sector in Bangladesh consists of several types of institutions. Bangladesh Bank is the central bank of Bangladesh and the chief regulatory authority in the banking sector.
According to the Bangladesh Bank Order, 1972 the Government of Bangladesh reorganized the Dhaka Branch of the State Bank of Pakistan as the central bank of the country and named it Bangladesh Bank with retrospective effect from 16 December 1971. Other than Bangladesh Bank, banks in Bangladesh are primarily categorized into two types: Scheduled and Non-Scheduled banks.[1]
Scheduled banks
editScheduled banks are licensed under the Bank Company Act, 1991 (Amended to 2013). Currently, there are 61 scheduled banks in Bangladesh.[1]
State-owned commercial banks (SOCBs)
editThere are 6 state-owned commercial banks (SOCBs) that are fully or majorly owned by the Government of Bangladesh.[1]
Specialized banks (SDBs)
edit3 specialized banks are now operating which were established for specific objectives like agricultural or industrial development. These banks are also fully or majorly owned by the Government of Bangladesh.[1]
Private commercial banks (PCBs)
editThere is a total of 43 PCBs in operation right now. They are majorly owned by private entities and classified into two types.[1]
Conventional PCBs
editIn total 33 conventional PCBs are now operating in the industry. They perform the banking functions in a conventional fashion i.e. interest-based operations.[1]
- AB Bank PLC
- Bangladesh Commerce Bank Limited
- Bank Asia PLC
- Bengal Commercial Bank Limited
- BRAC Bank PLC
- City Bank PLC
- Community Bank Bangladesh PLC
- Dhaka Bank PLC
- Dhaka Mercantile Co-Operative Bank Limited
- Dutch-Bangla Bank PLC
- Eastern Bank PLC
- IFIC Bank PLC
- Jamuna Bank Limited
- Meghna Bank PLC
- Mercantile Bank PLC
- Midland Bank Limited
- Modhumoti Bank Limited
- Mutual Trust Bank PLC
- National Credit & Commerce Bank PLC
- NRB Bank Limited
- NRBC Bank PLC
- ONE Bank PLC
- Premier Bank PLC
- Prime Bank PLC
- Pubali Bank PLC.
- Shimanto Bank Limited
- Southeast Bank Limited
- South Bangla Agriculture and Commerce Bank Limited
- Trust Bank PLC
- United Commercial Bank PLC
- Uttara Bank PLC
Islami Shariah Based PCBs
editThere are 10 Islami Shariah-based PCBs in Bangladesh and they execute banking activities according to Islami Shariah-based principles i.e. Profit-Loss Sharing (PLS) mode.[1] Exim Bank PLC
- Al-Arafah Islami Bank PLC
- First Security Islami Bank PLC
- Global Islami Bank PLC
- ICB Islamic Bank PLC
- Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC
- Shahjalal Islami Bank PLC
- Social Islami Bank PLC
- Standard Bank PLC
- Union Bank PLC
Amalgamation
editIn April 2024 the central bank of Bangladesh issued banking merger policy for merger of weak banks with strong banks – both voluntary and mandatory.[2] Following merger process are ongoing:[3]
- Padma Bank Limited merged with EXIM Bank PLC
- National Bank Limited did not merge with United Commercial Bank PLC
- BASIC Bank PLC merged with City Bank PLC
- Bangladesh Development Bank PLC merged with Sonali Bank PLC
- Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank merged with Bangladesh Krishi Bank
Foreign commercial banks (FCBs)
editIn total 9 FCBs are operating in Bangladesh as the branches of the banks which are incorporated in abroad.[1]
- Bank Al-Falah Limited (Pakistan)
- Citibank N.A (United States of America)
- Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC (Sri Lanka)
- Habib Bank Limited (Pakistan)
- HSBC (China)
- National Bank of Pakistan (Pakistan)
- Standard Chartered Bank (United Kingdom)
- State Bank of India (India)
- Woori Bank (South Korea)
Non-scheduled banks
editNon-scheduled banks are licensed only for specific functions and objectives and do not offer the same range of services as scheduled banks. There are now 5 non-scheduled banks in Bangladesh which are:
Ansar VDP Unnayan Bank, Karmashangosthan Bank, Grameen Bank, Jubilee Bank, Palli Sanchay Bank
Non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs)
editNon-bank financial institutions (NBFIs), known as financial institutions (FIs), are those types of financial institutions that are regulated under the Financial Institution Act, of 1993 and controlled by Bangladesh Bank. Now, 34 FIs operate in Bangladesh while the maiden one was established in 1981. Out of the total, two are fully government-owned, one is the subsidiary of a SOCB, 15 were initiated by private domestic initiatives and 15 were initiated by joint venture initiatives.[1]
NBFI's include:[4]
- Agrani SME Financing Company Limited
- Bangladesh Finance and Investment Company Limited (BD Finance)
- Bangladesh Industrial Finance Company Limited (BIFC)
- Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited (BIFFL)
- Bay Leasing and Investment Limited
- CVC Finance Limited
- DBH Finance PLC (DBH)
- Fareast Finance and Investment Limited
- FAS Finance and Investment Limited
- First Finance Limited
- GSP Finance Company (Bangladesh) Limited (GSPB)
- Hajj Finance Company Limited
- IDLC Finance Limited
- Industrial and Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited (IIDFC)
- Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL)
- International Leasing and Financial Services Limited
- IPDC Finance Limited
- Islamic Finance and Investment Limited
- LankaBangla Finance Limited
- Lankan Alliance Finance Limited
- Meridian Finance and Investment Limited.
- MIDAS Financing Limited. (MFL)
- Nagad Finance PLC
- National Finance Limited
- National Housing Finance and Investments Limited
- People's Leasing and Financial Services Limited
- Phoenix Finance and Investments Limited
- Premier Leasing and Finance Limited
- Prime Finance and Investment Limited
- Reliance Finance Limited
- Saudi-Bangladesh Industrial and Agricultural Investment Company Limited (SABINCO)
- The UAE-Bangladesh Investment Company Limited
- Union Capital Limited
- United Finance Limited
- Uttara Finance and Investments Limited
Specialized financial institutions (semi-formal sector)
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Financial System". Central Bank of Bangladesh. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
- ^ "Cenbank issues bank merger policy for first time". The Business Standard. 4 April 2024.
- ^ "National Bank set to merge with UCBL". Dhaka Tribune. 9 April 2024.
- ^ "Relevant links". Central Bank of Bangladesh. Retrieved 29 August 2018.