They also urged the authorities to withdraw the requirement for borrowers to deposit 2 percent in cash to become eligible for regularising defaulted loans, and called for quicker processing of applications and an end to delays at banks.
The demands were raised at a meeting between the Bangladesh Bank and representatives of several business organisations on Tuesday.
At the meeting, business leaders said entrepreneurs were facing various complications and bureaucratic delays at the banking level while seeking loans from a Tk 20,000 crore incentive fund. In many cases, banks were asking for additional documents, while decisions on loan applications were taking a long time.
Representatives of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), Bangladesh Chamber of Associations (BCA), Bangladesh Employers’ Federation (BEF), Bangladesh Jute Association (BJA) and Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) attended the meeting.
Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governors Md Kabir Ahmed and Md Sarwar Hossain, along with officials from relevant departments, were also present.
The meeting reviewed the implementation of various government and Bangladesh Bank incentive programmes, including possible gaps, ambiguities and implementation challenges in the central bank’s policy guidelines.
Participants also discussed the need to identify genuinely affected businesses and ensure that they receive the necessary financial support.
Business representatives said delays in holding bank board meetings were one of the major obstacles to approving loan and financial assistance applications. In some banks, they said, board meetings were taking up to a month to be convened.
They therefore called on banks to hold weekly or special board meetings when necessary so that applications for incentive loans could be processed more quickly.
The business leaders also demanded an end to requests for unnecessary documentation and called for a simpler decision-making process. They said procedural complications at different levels of banks were preventing genuinely affected entrepreneurs from accessing the incentive programmes.
Bangladesh Bank officials said proper implementation of the incentive programmes was a shared responsibility of all stakeholders. Banks, business organisations and other relevant parties would need to work together to ensure that genuinely affected businesses receive assistance quickly, they said.
The central bank also stressed the need to ensure that the funds under the incentive packages are used properly.
Business organisations, meanwhile, called for proper scrutiny and verification before issuing no-objection certificates (NOCs).
BKMEA President Mohammad Hatem told reporters that entrepreneurs were interested in accessing the Tk 20,000 crore incentive package, but many were unable to submit applications because of a lack of cooperation from some banks.
“Some banks are reluctant to accept applications, while others are discouraging entrepreneurs by citing various reasons,” he said.
