BRAC Bank receives Bangladesh Bank recognition

Bangladesh Bank has recognised BRAC Bank for its outstanding role in implementation of the first phase of Covid-19 CMSME stimulus package in FY 2020-2021.

Bangladesh Bank Governor Fazle Kabir handed over a certificate of recognition to BRAC Bank’s Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer Md. Sabbir Hossain at a ceremony at the central bank recently, the bank said in a statement.

The government declared a stimulus package amounting to Tk 20,000 crore to help Cottage, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (CMSME) recover from the pandemic blues. BRAC Bank fulfilled incremental target of Tk 1,500 crore in the first phase (April 2020-June 2021), which is the highest in the industry.

In the second phase (July 2021-June 2022), BRAC Bank has already disbursed Tk 893 crore as against a target of Tk 1,400 crore.

The bank made proactive efforts to help micro, small and medium businesses hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic secure much-needed funding. The financing with subsidized interest rate greatly helped the businesses to overcome the losses due to the pandemic. This easy term credit helps the CMSMEs make a strong comeback after the onslaught of the unprecedented disruption to business due to the outbreak, it said.

Being the largest collateral free SME financer in the country, BRAC Bank has always been committed to CMSME sector, which is the lifeblood of the economy and vital to employment generation and invigorating the country’s growth engine. The bank’s extensive SME network and large team enabled the bank to meet the highest target in stimulus loan disbursement.

Appreciating Bangladesh Bank’s commendation, BRAC Bank’s Managing Director and CEO Selim RF Hussain said, "We appreciate Bangladesh Bank for keeping confidence in BRAC Bank by assigning us with incremental target under the stimulus package. We express our gratitude for continuous guidance and policy support from Bangladesh Bank which was instrumental to fulfilling the target.

As an SME-focused bank, BRAC Bank is committed to ensure easy access to finance to the entrepreneurs at the grassroots. In view of the pandemic, we have redoubled our efforts to provide much-needed fund to the small and medium entrepreneurs. We believe this subsidised credit under the CMSME stimulus package will rejuvenate the industries and help them take productivity to the pre pandemic level.”