Banks asked to disburse CMSME stimulus within deadline

The Bangladesh Bank today asked banks to fulfil their lending target under the stimulus package dedicated to the cottage, micro, small and medium enterprises (CMSMEs) within the deadline this fiscal year.

Banks have so far disbursed only 39 per cent of the stimulus fund amounting to Tk 20,000 crore between July 1 last year and March 10 this year, according to data from the central bank.

This has prompted the banking regulator to arrange a meeting with managing directors of all banks where it asked to disburse the entire loans of the package within this fiscal year.

BB Governor Fazle Kabir presided over the meeting.

The governor asked banks to fulfil their respective lending target on time in the interest of revitalising the economy, a BB official, who attended the meeting, told The Daily Star quoting the governor.

This will help to minimise shocks emanating from the business slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic, he said.

The governor also said some banks had failed to achieve their target last year.

In April 2020, the BB unveiled a stimulus package worth Tk 20,000 crore for the CMSME sector to protect it from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

Of the sum, 77 per cent was disbursed.

The tenure of the first round of the stimulus loans expired in June last year.

The BB allocated another Tk 20,000 crore for the current fiscal year.

The Bangladesh Bank governor also asked banks to help importers opening letters of credit with a minimum margin for smooth import of essential commodities ahead of Ramadan, the fasting month for Muslims.