Despite high infl ationary pressure, the number of bank accounts with a deposit of Tk 1 crore or more increased by 6,962 to 1,16,908 in 2023, compared to the previous year. The amount in such accounts was Tk 7,41,466 crore, which is 42.39 per cent of the total bank deposits.
The amount of deposits stood at Tk 17,49,132 crore in 15,35,60,937 accounts in the baking system at the end of last year. Scheduled banks statistics report revealed the data, which was published by the Bangladesh Bank on Wednesday.
These accounts include both public and private sector accounts. However, the central bank does not disclose the exact number of individual accounts with deposits of Tk 1 crore or above.
According to the report, at the end of 2023, the number of private accounts which have a deposit of Tk 1 crore or above was 87,483, and the deposited amount was Tk 4,71,219.42 crore.
Meanwhile, the number of public accounts was 29,425 and the such accounts held Tk 2,70,247 crore in deposits. Analysts say the number of accounts with Tk 1 crore or more is increasing due to the vibrancy of businesses after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Even though the number of such accounts is supposed to decrease due to high inflation, it has not because the prices of goods and services have skyrocketed. As a result, the income of business entities has increased as well, which is refl ected in the accounts.
Commenting on the matter, former director general of Bangladesh Institute of Bank Management (BIBM) Toufic Ahmad Choudhury said, “We must first identify the people holding such accounts. There are government and private accounts on the list.
“But it can be said that a segment of private accounts holders with at least Tk 1 crore in deposits may have amassed illegal wealth, because many are liquidating their savings to tackle inflationary pressure. The regulator body must track down the owners of these accounts.”
According to the report, the number of such accounts was 83,839 at the end of 2019, which rose by 39.44 per cent to 1,16,908 in the last year. The amount of money in such accounts was Tk 5,26,997 crore in 2019, which increased by 40.69 per cent to Tk 7,41,466 crore in 2023.
Bangladesh has been witnessing high inflation throughout last year. In South Asia, Bangladesh witnessed the highest inflation after Pakistan, which hovered around 10 per cent.
In August last year, food inflation exceeded 12.5 per cent, the highest in the last decades. At the beginning of this year, inflation was not on the downward trend. Inflation stood at 9.86 per cent in January, but eased slightly to 9.67 per cent in February
