Business Desk :
Entrepreneurs aged between 21 and 45 can borrow up to Tk1 crore for a project or initiative from the Tk500 crore Start-up Fund, created by the Bangladesh Bank.
In addition, 10% of the fund will be allocated for women entrepreneurs, according to the start-up fund policy, published by the central bank on Monday.
The policy also stated that the loanee will be charged with 4% interest. The term of the loan is 5 years. The loan has installments to be repaid every three months or every six months and the maximum grace period for loan repayment is one year.
As per the policy, if an entrepreneur shares an idea with a bank for getting loan, the bank can’t disclose the idea to anyone else, whether it is financed or not.
The definition of start-up in the policy states that start-up means the innovation and advancement of new products, services, technologies, processes for the purpose of marketing.
Those technologically invented solutions have to be expandable, commercially sustainable and commercially successful, which will create employment and increase internal resources.
The initiative proposed by the entrepreneur must be completely new and creative. Applicants must have a certificate of training as a new entrepreneur from a government or appropriate authority.
In the absence of formal technical education, the entrepreneur must have appropriate practical knowledge, experience and ability to manage new ventures.
The policy also states that the Tk500 crore Start-up Fund will be used as a refinancing fund.
Banks, on the other hand, will set up their own start-up funds with 1% of their operating profit. Based on the operating profit made in December 2020, the banks will have to set aside this 1% for the next 5 years from 2021.
As a result, two start-up funds are being formed — one is funded by the central bank, the other is the bank’s own funds. For the current year, banks will be able to lend from both central bank funds and their own funds.
The policy stipulates that an entrepreneur must be between a minimum of 21 and a maximum of 45 years of age during the submission of his loan proposal to the bank. He should be engaged full-time with the proposed initiative.
One will not get a loan from this fund if s/he is a defaulter. One entrepreneur can take only a loan from a bank for one project. Multiple projects will not be accepted.
Banks will not be able to disburse the entire loan money in one instalment. The loan should be disbursed in a minimum of 3 instalments after reviewing the progress of the project/initiative.
