The overall transactions in call money market fell on Thursday, as lender banks were diversifying their excess funds in inter-bank Repo and term deposits, bankers said.
The overall turnover in the inter-bank call money market came down to Tk 36.16 billion on the day from Tk 38.90 billion on Wednesday. It was Tk 53.29 billion on Monday.
The call rate ranged between 7.0 per cent and 8.0 per cent on Thursday, unchanged from the previous day. But most of the deals were settled at rates between 7.25 per cent and 7.50 per cent, market operators said.
On the other hand, the banks were offered interest rates on inter-bank repurchase agreement (Repo) between 8.25 per cent and 8.50 per cent on Thursday against maximum 9.0 per cent of the previous working day, they added.
A treasury official of a private commercial bank alleged that the maximum interest rate on inter-bank Repo came down to 8.50 per cent on the day from 9.00 per cent, following intervention by the Bangladesh Bank (BB).
He also said some lender banks also offered their excess funds to cash-hungry banks and non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) in the form of inter-bank FDR (fixed deposit receipt) for receiving higher interest rates than the call money ones.
"The interest rates on inter-bank Repo have been fixed by the market forces," a BB senior official told the FE.
He also said demand for the government-approved securities will increase, if the inter-bank Repo is vibrant.
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