Special Correspondent :
The ministry of finance has instructed the concerned agencies to start a nation-wide automated (online) sale of savings certificates by June 30 this year, aiming at checking abuses in the investment of the government saving tools.
A directive in this regard was issued on Wednesday signed by Deputy Secretary (Finance Division) Md Saidul Islam. The concerned agencies have been asked to implement the automated service of savings certificates in Dhaka within this month, divisional level by April and district levels and other areas by June 30 this year.
“The government has taken the move to check abuses of the government-sponsored savings instruments,” a finance ministry official told The New Nation on Monday asking not to be named.
He said, the national savings schemes were rolled out for the benefit of the pensioners, small investors and middle class people. But it was alleged that corporate investors and wealthy people are now heavily investing in the government’s saving tools due to their high returns.
“Their investment was allegedly exceeding the limit and even they are making fictitious investments abusing current system of savings schemes operation. The automated system is expected to prevent all kinds of abuses,” he added.
The finance ministry official further said that Directorate of National Savings (DNS) has been asked to create a compact database of the subscribers of the national savings certificates to see whether the investors exceeding the investment limit or making fictitious investments.
The national tax authority will have access to the database of savers, which will help them identify tax evaders.
The savers will require national identity cards, bank accounts, mobile numbers and tax-identification numbers while purchasing the national savings certificates and bonds.
And those who have already invested in the savings certificates and bonds will need to submit the same to get profits or encash matured ones.
Under the system, a subscriber will get returns on the certificates directly in his/her bank accounts.
The DNS sources said currently around 20 million people have investments in different types of fixed-income instruments.
They said people can invest highest Tk 5.0 million in a particular certificate, but there have been allegations that many had invested as high as Tk 50 million due to lack of central database.
“High sales of savings certificates are immense ‘fiscal burden’ for the government and it now wants to put a brake on their sales by way of checking abuses in their investment,” the finance ministry official said.
The government’s borrowing from savings instruments reached the full-year target within seven months of the current fiscal as people flocked to invest in saving schemes due to their high return.
The net sale of National Savings Certificates (NSC) during July-January reached Tk 30,9,96 crore which is 118 per cent of the government’s total borrowing target, according to data from the Department of National Savings (NSD).
The government’s borrowing target from savings instruments was fixed at Tk 26,197 crore for the fiscal 2018-19.
The ministry of finance has instructed the concerned agencies to start a nation-wide automated (online) sale of savings certificates by June 30 this year, aiming at checking abuses in the investment of the government saving tools.
A directive in this regard was issued on Wednesday signed by Deputy Secretary (Finance Division) Md Saidul Islam. The concerned agencies have been asked to implement the automated service of savings certificates in Dhaka within this month, divisional level by April and district levels and other areas by June 30 this year.
“The government has taken the move to check abuses of the government-sponsored savings instruments,” a finance ministry official told The New Nation on Monday asking not to be named.
He said, the national savings schemes were rolled out for the benefit of the pensioners, small investors and middle class people. But it was alleged that corporate investors and wealthy people are now heavily investing in the government’s saving tools due to their high returns.
“Their investment was allegedly exceeding the limit and even they are making fictitious investments abusing current system of savings schemes operation. The automated system is expected to prevent all kinds of abuses,” he added.
The finance ministry official further said that Directorate of National Savings (DNS) has been asked to create a compact database of the subscribers of the national savings certificates to see whether the investors exceeding the investment limit or making fictitious investments.
The national tax authority will have access to the database of savers, which will help them identify tax evaders.
The savers will require national identity cards, bank accounts, mobile numbers and tax-identification numbers while purchasing the national savings certificates and bonds.
And those who have already invested in the savings certificates and bonds will need to submit the same to get profits or encash matured ones.
Under the system, a subscriber will get returns on the certificates directly in his/her bank accounts.
The DNS sources said currently around 20 million people have investments in different types of fixed-income instruments.
They said people can invest highest Tk 5.0 million in a particular certificate, but there have been allegations that many had invested as high as Tk 50 million due to lack of central database.
“High sales of savings certificates are immense ‘fiscal burden’ for the government and it now wants to put a brake on their sales by way of checking abuses in their investment,” the finance ministry official said.
The government’s borrowing from savings instruments reached the full-year target within seven months of the current fiscal as people flocked to invest in saving schemes due to their high return.
The net sale of National Savings Certificates (NSC) during July-January reached Tk 30,9,96 crore which is 118 per cent of the government’s total borrowing target, according to data from the Department of National Savings (NSD).
The government’s borrowing target from savings instruments was fixed at Tk 26,197 crore for the fiscal 2018-19.
