Expatriates sent nearly US$1.95 billion in remittances to Bangladesh during the first 26 days of October, according to the Bangladesh Bank (BB) data released on Sunday.
They sent nearly $1.53 billion remittances to the country during the first 19 days of this month. On an average, the daily remittances amounted to $75 million during this period, which was $80.70 million in the first 19 days of September, the BB data showed.
Sector insiders expect that the remittance inflow may maintain its steady momentum throughout the month. If the trend continues, the inflow may either surpass or come closer to the September figures, they opined.
By October 26, more than $547.32 million remittances came through the state-owned banks, $99.99 million through a specialised bank, $1.29 billion through the private commercial banks, and $5.12 million through the foreign banks.
The BB reported receiving $410.50 million as remittances between October 20 and October 26, $546 million between October 13 and October 19, $568.14 million between October 6 and October 12, and $424.70 million between October 1 and October 5.
The expatriates did not send any remittance through eight banks from October 20 to October 26. These banks include the state-owned Bangladesh Development Bank (BDBL), specialised Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB), and the private banks such as Community Bank, Citizens Bank, ICB Islamic Bank, and Padma Bank. Among the foreign banks, no remittance was sent through National Bank of Pakistan and State Bank of India.
In the first month of this fiscal year (FY) 2024-25, July, Bangladesh received $1.91377 billion as remittances. In August, the figure rose to $2.22415 billion, and in September to $2.40479 billion.
In FY 2023-24, the country received a total of $23.92 billion in remittances, equivalent to Tk 2.82 trillion, which marks the second highest remittance inflow in the country's history. The highest record was set during FY 2020-21, with remittances totalling $24.77 billion.
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