NCC Bank gets nod for 20 Islamic branches

Bangladesh Bank has given go-ahead to National Credit and Commerce Bank (NCC Bank) to convert 20 conventional banking branches into full-fledged Islamic banking branches.

According to a disclosure on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website today, the approval came through a Bangladesh Bank letter dated August 17.

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NCC Bank said it would take all necessary measures to meet Bangladesh Bank's conditions and proceed with the conversion accordingly.

The move comes as Islamic banking continues to gain ground in Bangladesh. A recent Bangladesh Bank report found that deposits at Islamic banks rose from Tk 4.52 lakh crore in June 2025 to Tk 4.67 lakh crore in June 2026, a growth of around 3.31 percent.

The central bank said the year-on-year rise points to a gradual shift in depositor preference towards Islamic banking.

Mudaraba-based deposits (profit-sharing partnership between the fund provider and the user) continued to dominate, accounting for about 86.87 percent of the Islamic banking deposit base, the BB report found.

The private sector drove the bulk of deposits, holding about 90.19 percent of the total as of June 2026.

Investments by Islamic banks also grew, rising from Tk 5.70 lakh crore in June 2025 to Tk 6.12 lakh crore in June 2026, an increase of approximately 7.37 percent.

Bangladesh Bank attributed this to rising demand for Islamic financing products, particularly profit-and-loss-sharing modes.

Recently, NCC Bank reported a profit of Tk 116 crore for the April-June quarter of 2026, up 5 percent year-on-year, driven by higher investment income, according to its financial reports.

As per DSE data, sponsors and directors held 42.10 percent of NCC Bank's shares as of July 31, 2026, while institutions held 21.35 percent, with the rest owned by the public and foreign investors.