Banks in Bangladesh are contributing to the rise in inequality as they collect deposits from people from all walks of life but give loans to only a few, analysts said yesterday.

Lawmaker Morshed Alam has been elected chairman of Mercantile Bank.

State banks did not get a single penny from taxpayers in the just concluded fiscal year to make up their capital deficit, in a clear sign from the government of its intent to stop pampering the errant lenders.

The Supreme Court stays till July 8 the High Court orders that halted Bangladesh Bank’s circular allowing defaulters to reschedule their loans with a repayment period of up to 10 years and get further loans.

State-owned BASIC Bank has finally got a managing director. The post had been vacant since November last year.

Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman has recently been re-elected chairman of NRB Bank.

The Bank of England cut its growth forecast for Britain’s economy to zero in the second quarter of 2019 and highlighted risks from global trade tensions and growing fears of a no-deal Brexit.

Computer meltdowns. Unexplained holes in accounting. Personnel management scandals.

The Reserve Bank of India diluted its guidelines on stressed assets and has now mandated banks to undertake a review of a borrower’s accounts within 30 days of default, according to a circular issued on Friday.

The Bank of England is approaching the time when it will need to raise interest rates again to keep inflation pressures in check, its chief economist Andy Haldane wrote in an article which pushes back strongly against recent market sentiment.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde warned on Saturday that the increasing presence of technology giants using big data and artificial intelligence could cause a significant disruption to the world’s financial system.

The continued slowdown in deposit growth can go on to raise concerns of stability of the banking sector, said a Bangladesh Bank report -- in a pressing call to the government to cut down the interest rate on national savings certificates.

Banks should be the only ones setting the interest rates as they offer loans at rates that are based on factors like cost of funds, credit worthiness of a customer and the prevailing market condition, said AKM Shaheed Reza, chairman of Mercantile Bank.

The government’s interest burden is likely to get heavier in the upcoming fiscal year thanks to its excessive reliance on high-cost national savings certificates to fund its expenditures.

The central bank yesterday injected Tk 2,300 crore into the money market to ease liquidity crunch in the banking sector amid the cash withdrawal spree in the lead up to Eid.

Syed Faridul Islam has recently joined United Commercial Bank (UCB) as additional managing director.

Dilwar H Choudhury has recently been elected chairman of the audit committee of the board of directors of Bank Asia.

State banks can keep on expecting to be coddled despite their continued financial irregularities and irresponsible lending practices, with the government looking to inject Tk 1,500 crore in the upcoming fiscal year to help the lenders meet their capital shortfall.

Romo Rouf Chowdhury has recently been elected vice chairman of Bank Asia. The election took place at a meeting of the bank’s board of directors, says a statement. Chowdhury is one of the sponsor shareholders as well as sponsor directors of Bank Asia. He holds directorship of various sister concerns of Rangs Group and Sea Fishers Group.

Mutual Trust Bank has recently become the third Bangladeshi bank to receive the certificate for complying with the payment card industry data security standard (PCI DSS) set by Visa, MasterCard, Discover Financial Services, JCB International and American Express.