Affected Stock Investors
Refinance scheme application deadline extended for 4th time
The supervision committee for Tk 900-crore government refinance scheme for the affected small-scale investors on Sunday extended for the fourth time the deadline to get loan applications from merchant banks and brokerage houses till March 31. The five-member supervision committee made the decision in a meeting on the day, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission executive director Saifur Rahman informed reporters after the meeting.
Merchant banks and brokerage houses are asked to file applications against affected investors under their organisations.
The supervision committee for the first time had set November 30 as deadline to receive applications from the merchant banks and brokerage houses in favour of affected small investors.
The deadline was extended by another two months in three phases as the scheme did not get enough response from the merchant banks and brokerage houses.
As per the latest report, 14,004 affected investors of 39 institutions had so far filed applications with the loan approval committee headed by Investment Corporation of Bangladesh managing director Md Fayekuzzaman.
The loan approval committee for government refinance scheme has sanctioned around Tk 84.89 crore loans for 3,030 investors under seven merchant banks and brokerage houses.
But 9,39,845 affected investors are yet to file applications to the loan approval committee.
‘The supervision committee extended the deadline for getting applications from the merchant banks and brokerage houses till March 31 as we are expecting more response,’ said Saifur, also the head of the supervision committee.
‘The loan approval committee has already got 19 applications from merchant banks and 20 applications from brokerage houses against Tk 300.06-crore loans,’ he said.
While asked about the merchant banks’ and brokers’ demand for waive of a condition for fund release that asked directors’ personal guarantee, another member of the supervision committee said, ‘It has already informed the finance ministry about the conditions and we will act accordingly as per the government’s decision.’
As per Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission report sent to the finance ministry in April 2013, only 7,413 small-scale investors out of the 9,53,849 affected by the 2010-11 stock market crash got interest waiver under the government-announced compensation package.
Bangladesh Bank on August 26, 2013 released Tk 300 crore to ICB as the first tranche of the Tk 900-crore refinance scheme.
On November 27, merchant banks and brokerage houses at a meeting with the BSEC had requested the commission to take steps to obtain a directive from the National Board of Revenue allowing the amount of loans waived for the affected small-scale investors as allowable expenses.
-With New Age input
