Despite a year passing since the political shift, the banking sector has yet to regain normalcy, leaving many depositors unable to withdraw money when required. Bangladesh Bank insists that transactions will stabilise soon, though economists warn that solving the crisis with government funding without punishing loan defaulters will not yield sustainable results.
Depositor Monir Hossain has found himself in difficulty after failing to withdraw his own deposited money. His predicament mirrors that of nearly 9.2 million customers of five Sharia-based Islamic banks, weakened by long-standing irregularities, internal deficiencies and widespread loan defaults. These banks have recently been brought together under the newly formed Consolidated Islamic Bank.
As per the latest update from Bangladesh Bank, loan disbursements in the banking sector exceeded Tk 18 lakh crore up to last September. Defaulted loans account for nearly Tk 6.5 lakh crore—approximately 36 per cent of total loans. Among these, 76 per cent of loans issued by Social Islami, Global Islami, First Security, Union and Exim Bank remain unpaid, amounting to around Tk 1.5 lakh crore.
While depositors grow increasingly concerned about the fate of their savings, the central bank says that the withdrawal system will soon improve, although it may take up to two years for full normalisation.
Arif Hossain Khan, spokesperson for Bangladesh Bank, noted that once Tk 20,000 crore of repaid capital is secured, depositors will begin receiving their funds. He added that the delay is due to procedural and technical complexities following the transfer of the bank licence, though no major legal issues exist.
The former chief economist of Bangladesh Bank emphasised that returning customers’ money is the biggest challenge and expressed scepticism over whether the Tk 35,000 crore government investment will significantly alleviate the crisis.
Dr Mustafa K Mujeri, Executive Director of the Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development, said that people deposit money to access it when necessary. Now, many cannot even withdraw two thousand taka—a situation he described as unacceptable and harmful to the banking sector.
Dr Shahadat Hossain Siddique of the University of Dhaka stated that public trust is fundamental for banking operations. Failure to maintain basic services undermines confidence, and the government’s financial support may not be fully recoverable in the future.
Bangladesh Bank has assured that depositors will continue receiving profit on their deposits until the refund procedure is completed.
Glive24/SS