Bangladesh Bank (BB) governor Dr Atiur Rahman said in Dhaka on Thursday the non-performing loans (NPLs) are not 'a big problem' for the economy although different quarters are very critical about this issue.
"The amount of the classified loans seems to be bigger in size. Actually, the overall size of the bad loans looks larger due to some big defaulters in Bangladesh. But if we exclude the classified loans of the Bangladesh Krishi Bank, the Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank and some other state-owned banks, the amount will be very nominal," he said.
Dr Rahman was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of a two-day conference, organised by the Bangladesh Statistical Association (BSA), at the city's Planning Commission office Thursday.
Presided over by BSA President Prof Dr Musleh Uddin, State Minister for Finance and Planning MA Mannan, Information and Statistical Division Secretary Suraiya Begum and others spoke on the occasion.
Dr Atiur Rahman, while sketching an excellent picture of Bangladesh's economy, said there is nothing to be worried about the NPLs of the commercial banks.
According to the central bank data, the quantum of classified loans increased 11.58 per cent to Tk 572.91 billion in the third quarter (Q3) of 2014 (July-September) from Tk 513.44 billion in the previous quarter of this year.
The amount was Tk 481.72 billion in the first quarter of the current calendar year 2014.
The BB governor said Bangladesh's economy is the strongest among the Asia-Pacific region of the globe. "Bangladesh's economy registered 6.2 per cent growth on an average in last five years. The key thing is that the growth here is stable."
The BB chief said: "Bangladesh's money exchange rate is the most stable in Asia. There were a little bit of ups and downs in last three years. We have a lot of foreign exchange in reserve. So, the overall economic situation is better."
Claiming radical change in utilisation of Information Technology in procuring information from banks and financial institutions, he said dependable, quality and adequate statistics is very vital for social and economic life like the daily basic need of food and dresses of the people.
State Minister MA Mannan said the people are getting more reliable statistics at present, compared to any other previous governments.
The election of the BSA will be held today (Friday) in its second day of the 2-day conference.
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