SICK, CLOSED INDUSTRIES
BB announces package to resolve loan accounts
Bangladesh Bank has announced a package of facility to resolve the loan accounts of government-identified sick and closed industries.
The BB on June 20 issued a circular to managing directors and chief executive officers of all scheduled banks saying that the banks could convert the loan accounts of sick and closed industries to blocked accounts.
According to the banking regulations, the clients do not pay any interest on blocked loan accounts.
The BB circular said the banks could give a moratorium facility to the accounts and they (banks) could also implement a relaxed policy to realise the loan from the closed and sick industries.
The BB said the sick and closed industries which had already been facilitated by an existing government package would not come under the new central bank package.
The banks will be able to waive the interest suspense and penalty interest for the identified closed and sick industries. But the banks do not have to waive the original loan amount and the fees of the litigations of the closed and sick industries.
The banks can also be considering to waive the imposed interest by ensuring their recovery of cost of fund and not to debit their income accounts, the BB said.
Board of directors of a bank will be able to relax the down payment policy to reschedule the defaulted loan if any sick and closed industry seek new loan. The banks will have to take no objection letter from the BB in this regard.
The banks will consider the down payment policy on the case-to-case basis.
The sick and closed industries which will seek the facility will have to apply to the respective bank within the next two months after issuing the circular.
The BB said that the identified sick and closed industries which were under the government package would be resolved in accordance with the government direction.
But the private commercial banks will be able to waive the interest compensation for closed and sick industries before government direction, the circular said.
-With New Age input
