Business Desk :
Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) president Sheikh F Fahim said lending rate should be simple, not compound.
He said the targeted single-digit interest rates have been made available from April 2020. “We’re thankful to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for that.”
Mr Fahim made the observation in an exclusive interview with an English Daily on the occasion of the golden jubilee of the country’s independence.
Financial institutions’ access to finance should be simplified, transparent, consistent and predictable (STPC), without fine prints and hidden costs, he said.
“If ease-of-doing business is supported with ease of financing, entrepreneurs and financial institutions will be benefitted.”
Mr Fahim said trade financing and project financing ought to be based on feasibility; technology and alternative credit assessments with insurance credit risk will increase volume and access which is a win-win situation for all stakeholders.
He said FBCCI member chambers and associations might assist in KYC (know your client) for collateral-free loans. “Our earlier such initiatives had a 99 per cent recovery rate,” the trade body leader stated.
On Bangladesh’s achievement over the past five decades, Mr Fahim said the government created an enabling environment, and the dynamic and resilient private sector is leading the nation forward.
Skilled human resources and back-to-back letters of credit, lower tariffs of target sectors like textile and apparel assisted in strengthening them.
“If these measures are replicated, it will contribute to diverse industries as per global market demands in addition to the indefinite markets,” Mr Fahim cited.
He said Bangladesh has made substantial economic growth-oriented progress and managed to perform well in the spectrums of social indicators, natural disasters and poverty (now 21 per cent from 46 per cent in 2008), public healthcare and literacy.
In the past few decades, with the practice of democratic governance and increased accountability in bureaucracy, with the rise of entrepreneurs has enabled tremendous progress in sectors ranging from macroeconomic to social development, and all the tangible improvements have been reflected in the indexes of development partners.
Since the last decade, Mr Fahim said, the efforts of the current government under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, working towards the vision of 2021, the achievement of SDGs in 2030, and the transformation into a developed country in 2041; have enabled new sectors to be incorporated into the economy.
