Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - The central bank of Bangladesh purchased US$3.76 billion from the commercial banks directly in the fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 to help keep the inter-bank foreign exchange (forex) market stable, officials said.
“The central bank has followed a market-based exchange rate policy continuously to avoid excessive volatility,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told BBN while explaining the main objective of intervention in the market.
On the other hand, the central bank sold only $357 million to the banks in the FY 15 to meet the demand for the greenback in the market, according to the central bank latest statistics.
The central banker also said the BB is purchasing the greenback from the banks continuously to protect the interests of exporters and migrant workers by keeping the exchange rate of the Bangladesh Taka (BDT) against the US dollar stable.
As part of the move, the BB bought $35 million at market rate from a commercial bank on Thursday as part of its intervention in the market, he added.
The US dollar was quoted at BDT 77.80 in the inter-bank forex market unchanged from the previous level, market operators said.
The country’s forex reserve reached $25.03 billion on Thursday from $25.02 billion of the previous day, following the US dollar purchase.
BBN/SSR/AD