Committee formed to draft service rules of Probashi bank

The government has formed a committee to draft the organogram and service rules of the Probashi Kallyan Bank or Expatriates' Welfare Bank, officials said. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina opened the bank last month by providing loans to four persons including three women who went to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with jobs. The six-member committee has been tasked with finalising the modus operandi of the bank that will mainly finance the cost of overseas migration. "We are working on it. We hope to submit our draft recommendations to the government in a few months," a member of the committee told the FE. He said each day the bank receives applications between 20 and 25 and the number of applicants has reached around 160. He added the loan sanction depends on the needs of applicants and other criteria. "At present we are mainly providing loans to female migrants who intend to go to Lebanon and other Middle Eastern countries as house maids," he added. To gear up the functions of the bank, he said a meeting was held on May 2 between the bank management and banking and legal experts. The meeting discussed on how to develop the bank's services so that Bangladeshi expatriates could send their remittances in a faster way and with affordable rates. "At present, expatriates have to pay service charge between US$ 8 and US$ 10 against sending remittance of US$ 1,000," Board Secretary of the Probashi Kallyan Bank Mohammed Kefayet Ullah told the FE. With regard to the bank's future expansion, he said, "Apart from the head office, there will be branches at divisional headquarters and district level soon after the finalisation of the bank's service rules." "The Probashi Kallyan Bank will not operate like other existing banks. We are consulting with experts to improve and diversify its services," Secretary of the Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry Dr Zafar Ahmed Khan said. "We will open a website next month so that people can post their recommendations on the proposed organogram and guidelines of the bank rules. And after that we will finalise the draft organogram," he added. The bank's authorised capital is Tk 5000 million (500 crore) while its paid up capital is Tk 1000 million (100 crore).