Shimanto Bank plans to expand rural footprint

30 more branches to be opened in five yrs

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FE Team | Published: September 01, 2018 22:08:24

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FE Report
Shimanto Bank Ltd (SMBL), a private commercial bank owned by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Welfare Trust, has planned to expand its banking services to countryside targeting the rural economy.
In this regard, the bank has taken an initiative to open 30 more branches in border areas within next five years.
SMBL managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) Muklesur Rahman said these at a press conference organised at the convention hall of Shimanto Square in the city's Dhanmondi area on Saturday on the occasion of the second anniversary of the bank.
Bank's chief operating officer (COO) Rafiqul Islam, senior executive vice president and head of human resources AKM Golam Rabbani and head of retail and SME Anwar Faruq Talukder also spoke on the occasion.
SMBL started its journey as the 57th commercial bank of the country on September 01, 2016. It has now 13 branches across the country.
Referring to a huge potential of the country's rural economy, the SMBL managing director said, "We want to contribute more to the rural economy, especially near border areas because there are still many unbanked people."
Smuggling is a major concern in the border areas of the country, he said. "SMBL can reach out to the people connected to smuggling and support them financially to become mainstream entrepreneurs instead of continuing the illegal act."
Talking about non-performing loans' (NPL) scenario in the country's banking sector, Mr Rahman said proper monitoring, good governance and careful selection of borrowers can help reduce NPLs in the banking industry.
However, SMBL doesn't have any NPL yet, he said. "We can't guarantee that there will be no NPL in the bank, but we will try to keep it at a minimal level."
The top official of the bank mentioned that the bank's deposit stood at around Tk 6.0 billion while the amount of loans and advances of the bank is Tk 4.5 billion.
He also said, "There is confusion among some people that SMBL is only for BGB members. We want to make it clear that SMBL is a scheduled commercial bank for all."
SMBL launched online banking service from the day when it went into operation and the bank has been working to facilitate technology-based banking, he added.
He also mentioned that the bank offers loans at an interest rate of 9.0 per cent and collect deposits at 6.0 per cent.
Debit cards of SMBL can be used in ATM booths of 27 commercial banks, he added.
The bank offers loans and advances for education, housing, vehicle, SMEs and agriculture.
Currently it offers two types of credit cards to its clients - shimanto dual currency gold credit card and shimanto dual currency classic credit card.
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