The interest rate on bank deposits has not increased as much as demand.
According to the Bangladesh Bank data, 53 out of 61 banks do not offer their customers more than 6 per cent interest on deposits. Only two banks are offering above 7 per cent interest, which is not on par with the current inflation in the country.
However, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) latest data showed that the annual inflation rate in Bangladesh stood at 9.92 per cent in August. The deposit rate is failing to meet the demand for daily essentials because of rising inflation, said experts.
Privately-owned banks offer an average interest rate of 4.70 per cent while state-owned banks offer an average interest rate of 4.32 per cent.
Insiders think that people are not willing to invest in deposit schemes due to the low-interest rate on deposits in the banking sector. So, deposits declined this year compared to the same time last year.
Due to low-interest rates on deposits and rising cost of living in the country, the banking sector saw the lowest deposit growth in the fiscal year 2022-23 compared to the previous four fiscal years.
As a result, cash outflow increased in July. It indicated that people withdrew huge money from banks.
According to the central bank data, deposit growth in the banking sector rose by 8.40 per cent to Tk 15,95,260 crore in FY23 compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year.
On the other hand, the net growth of savings certificates increased in August this year.
