Bundles of hundred dollar notes
Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN)- The flow of inward remittances jumped by nearly 17 per cent in the first 19 days of this month ahead of the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr festival.
The remittance receipts rose to US$ 807.77 million during the period under review from $692.01 million in the same period of the previous month, according to the central bank’s latest statistics.
The remittance inflow was estimated at $1.09 billion in April 2017, up by $15.12 million from that of the previous month. In March 2017, the amount stood at $1.08 billion. It was $1.19 billion in April 2016.
“The flow of inward remittance increased significantly during the period under review mainly due to the Holy Ramadan and the upcoming Eid festival,” a senior official of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) told BBN in Dhaka on Sunday.
He also said the upward trend of inward remittance may continue until the Eid festival.
Currently, 29 exchange houses are operating across the globe, and 1,135 drawing arrangements have been set up abroad to expedite the remittance inflow, according to the central banker.
The central bank earlier took a series of measures to encourage the expatriate Bangladeshis to send their money through formal banking channel, instead of illegal “hundi” system to help boost the country’s foreign exchange reserve.
Talking to BBN, another BB senior official said the central bank has already sent letters to the Bangladesh missions aboard for taking steps to close illegal bKash or Rocket agents to stop sending money home by migrant workers through informal channels.
He also said mobile banking operators are also appointing lawyers to stop the illegal agents aboard.
The government has set a plan to ease the sending procedures of remittances for making the sector more vibrant for the country's economy, he added.
BBN/SSR/AD