In the first nine months (July-March) of the current financial year (FY24), inward remittance grew by $1 billion to $17 billion from $16 billion during the same period of the last financial year, according to Bangladesh Bank (BB) statistics.
Data shows total inward remittance including the remaining three months in the ongoing fiscal is likely to surpass last fiscals $21.6 billion as current fiscals nine months growth is higher than the last fiscals nine month.
The trend also shows total remittance at the end of FY24 may reach $22 billion.
On the other hand despite a slow growth of inward remittance in April this year the May-July inward remittance may be in better position based on the governments cash incentives along with banks own incentives to encourage expatriates to remit in legal channels.
According to central banks latest data, Bangladesh in first twelve days of the running month received an amount of $877.10 million from expatriates which is nearly $ 1 billion. It means on an average it received $73 million per day during the Eid Ul Fitr Months.
Earlier in January, remitters sent home $915.91 million in the first 12 days of the month, according to the BB data. Remittance receipts were down by 7.87 per cent in March than in February, when the inflows reached $2.16 billion.
In the last 12 days of April, state-owned commercial banks brought home $72.08 million in remittance, specialised banks $48.42 million, private commercial banks $753.93 million and foreign commercial banks $2.67 million.
Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC retained its top spot as the largest remittance collector, bringing in the highest amount sent home by migrant workers, disclosed the data.
With an eye to attracting foreign remittance, the government introduced a 2.0-per cent incentive in 2019 and later raised it to 2.5 per cent. Now, banks provide up to 2.5 per cent from their own coffers. This is in addition to governments 2.5-per cent cash incentive.
