Bangladesh Bank has launched an extensive investigation after “finding evidence” that numerous local and foreign banks have been involved in the buying and selling of dollars at prices exceeding the fixed rate amid a supply crunch of the currency.
Mezbaul Haque, a spokesman and executive director of the central bank, revealed to bdnews24.com an investigation has been initiated in response to the complaint.
The outcome of the investigation will determine whether the banks involved have violated the policies of the central bank, he said.
He said action would be taken based on the investigation's findings.
However, he declined to reveal the names of the banks or the specific rates at which they had sold dollars, mentioning that more information would be shared after the investigation is concluded.
These banks have traded dollars at excessively high rates, disregarding the fixed rates set by the Bangladesh Foreign Exchange Dealers Association (BAFEDA), an organisation representing banks involved in exchange of foreign currency.
According to central bank officials, 13 domestic and foreign banks, including state-owned, private, and previously penalised banks, were involved in buying and selling dollars at high rates.
Earlier, in August 2022, Bangladesh Bank directed six domestic and foreign banks to remove their treasury chiefs for their involvement in raising the price of the US dollar by hoarding more greenbacks than necessary.
The media reported the involvement of Standard Chartered Bangladesh, BRAC Bank, Dutch-Bangla Bank Ltd, The City Bank, Southeast Bank, and Prime Bank during that time.
After receiving explanations from the banks, Bangladesh Bank gave the treasury chiefs the opportunity to reinstate them after a month, after accounting for legal limitations. Furthermore, Bangladesh Bank instructed that 50 percent of the profits earned from selling dollars at inflated prices should be transferred to the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) fund.
At that time, the banks were instructed to provide a written assurance that they would not raise the dollar rate, even within the legal limits.
Bangladesh is moving towards achieving a unified exchange rate in accordance with the guidelines set by the International Monetary Fund.
The BAFEDA and the Association of Bankers, Bangladesh, or ABB, have been fixing the official exchange rates of dollars flowing into the country through the banking channel for different sectors since September 2022.
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