SCBs urged to improve efficiency thru' using modern technology
Tuesday, 22 January 2008
FE Report
Finance and Planning Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam Monday asked state-owned commercial banks (SCBs) to improve efficiency through using modern technology and offer better services to the clients.
"You have to improve the quality of services with a coordinated effort to achieve your goal," he said while addressing the inaugural session of the Annual Conference -2008 of the Sonali Bank Limited at a local hotel Monday.
"We are now living in an era of open market economy where the customer is the key," the finance adviser said, adding that the bankers will have to provide better services to the clients for the sake of their existence.
He termed some crucial indicators, including sanctioning of loans, export financing and ratio of classified loan portfolios of the largest SCB as unsatisfactory, saying the Sonali Bank has to improve efficiency in sanctioning loan.
Citing example of unusual delay of one year in sanctioning a loan by Sonali Bank, the adviser said some clients were forced to go back to private commercial banks from the bank after waiting three to four months.
"You can not survive if such a situation continues," he said, adding that the bank will have to provide better services to their clients for facing the challenges in the banking sector.
The Chairman of the Sonali Bank Board of Directors, Ali Imam Majumder, presided over the inaugural session where Bangladesh Bank Governor Salehuddin Ahmed was special guest.
Mentioning management and governance, loan processing and weakness of financial account as challenges for the Sonali Bank, the central bank chief said the bank will have to strengthen their internal supervision to improve efficiency.
The BB governor suggested that the attitude of bankers will have to change aiming to provide better services to their clients.
Laying emphasis on reducing the spread between lending and deposit rates, Salehuddin said other banks will follow if the Sonali Bank reduces its spread through improvement of efficiency.
Meanwhile, the spread between lending and deposit rates have slightly increased in September 2007 despite persuasion to the commercial banks by the central bank to come down the rate at a reasonable level.
The weighted average spread between lending and deposit rates in the country's banking sector stood at 6.16 per cent as on September 30, 2007 against 5.93 per cent of June 30 last, according to the central bank statistics.
Besides, the weighted average rates on lending stood at 12.92 per cent in September last while the interest rates on deposit were paid at 6.76 per cent by the banks, the data showed.
The average spread of the four SCBs, private commercial banks (PCBs), foreign commercial banks (FCBs), specialised banks (SBs) is 5.88 per cent, 6.17 per cent, 8.91 per cent and 2.98 per cent respectively.
Ali Imam Majumder, who is also Cabinet Secretary, said the bank should take lessons from the last year's failures to achieve its goal.
Finance and Planning Adviser Mirza Azizul Islam Monday asked state-owned commercial banks (SCBs) to improve efficiency through using modern technology and offer better services to the clients.
"You have to improve the quality of services with a coordinated effort to achieve your goal," he said while addressing the inaugural session of the Annual Conference -2008 of the Sonali Bank Limited at a local hotel Monday.
"We are now living in an era of open market economy where the customer is the key," the finance adviser said, adding that the bankers will have to provide better services to the clients for the sake of their existence.
He termed some crucial indicators, including sanctioning of loans, export financing and ratio of classified loan portfolios of the largest SCB as unsatisfactory, saying the Sonali Bank has to improve efficiency in sanctioning loan.
Citing example of unusual delay of one year in sanctioning a loan by Sonali Bank, the adviser said some clients were forced to go back to private commercial banks from the bank after waiting three to four months.
"You can not survive if such a situation continues," he said, adding that the bank will have to provide better services to their clients for facing the challenges in the banking sector.
The Chairman of the Sonali Bank Board of Directors, Ali Imam Majumder, presided over the inaugural session where Bangladesh Bank Governor Salehuddin Ahmed was special guest.
Mentioning management and governance, loan processing and weakness of financial account as challenges for the Sonali Bank, the central bank chief said the bank will have to strengthen their internal supervision to improve efficiency.
The BB governor suggested that the attitude of bankers will have to change aiming to provide better services to their clients.
Laying emphasis on reducing the spread between lending and deposit rates, Salehuddin said other banks will follow if the Sonali Bank reduces its spread through improvement of efficiency.
Meanwhile, the spread between lending and deposit rates have slightly increased in September 2007 despite persuasion to the commercial banks by the central bank to come down the rate at a reasonable level.
The weighted average spread between lending and deposit rates in the country's banking sector stood at 6.16 per cent as on September 30, 2007 against 5.93 per cent of June 30 last, according to the central bank statistics.
Besides, the weighted average rates on lending stood at 12.92 per cent in September last while the interest rates on deposit were paid at 6.76 per cent by the banks, the data showed.
The average spread of the four SCBs, private commercial banks (PCBs), foreign commercial banks (FCBs), specialised banks (SBs) is 5.88 per cent, 6.17 per cent, 8.91 per cent and 2.98 per cent respectively.
Ali Imam Majumder, who is also Cabinet Secretary, said the bank should take lessons from the last year's failures to achieve its goal.