Inter-bank money market enters into digital system

Bangladesh inter-bank money market has entered into Digital arena as 42 banks and non-banking financial institutions (FIs) have made successful dealing of call money worth about Tk 500 crore through DhakaMoney-2009 digital system of Dhakabiz.com under a 3-day Trial Dealing Program that concluded yesterday.
Dkakabiz.com, the first real-time financial Information Service of Bangladesh, organized this programme in cooperation with Bangladesh Foreign Exchange Dealers’ Association(BAFEDA), Primary Dealers Association Bangladesh Limited (PDBL) and Bangladesh Money Dealers Association (BAMDA) from February 16 to February 18.
The program was kicked off by a dummy deal of Tk 10.00 crore between money dealer Shahiduzzaman of Sonali Bank Ltd and money dealer Khondaker Ashifuzzaman of Jamuna Bank Ltd at 2.31 pm on Tuesday and concluded by a successful deal of Tk 5.00 crore between money dealer Sadekuzzaman of IFIC and money dealer Shams Afzal of Standard Chartered Bank at 5.00 pm yesterday.
Under the program, money dealers of 42 leading commercial banks and non-bank financial institutions made call money deals through DhakaMoney-2009 dealing system on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 2.30 pm to 5.00 pm. Central bank officials, top executives of banks and high officials of Dhakabiz.com observed the dealing through online connection.
Call money dealing through digital system is a long demand from fund managers and money dealers of banks and financial institutions. Because it helps banks and FIs to reduce risks and cost of operation and increase efficiency in the inter-bank money market. BAFEDA, PDBL and BAMDA in separate meetings decided to start call money dealing through DhakaMoney-2009 system. Currently banks and FIs are dealing call money through telephone and more than 40 commercial banks pay about Tk 20 crore worth foreign currency annually to a foreign service provider for a trading platform for foreign currencies. But due to various reasons, most banks are not dealing foreign currencies through the costly foreign digital system.
The local service provider offers very low rates to banks and FIs and as a result professional organizations of banks have decided to use DhakaMoney-2009 dealing system. Dhakabiz.com chairman Syed Ashraf Ali, a reputed foreign exchange expert and former executive director of Bangladesh Bank have expressed his gratitude to the money dealers of banks and FIs and urged all concerned to extend their cooperation for introduction of a digital inter-bank market.
Steps have been taken to improve the system to meet the demand, he said. Bangladesh bank governor recently told the press that Bangladesh bank would turn into a paperless institution soon and inter-bank market would be completely digital by 2010.  He is likely to inaugurate formal dealing through Bangladeshi dealing system very soon.

Courtesy of BSS via The Independent