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Decision to withdraw restrictions on garment factories |
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September 26, 2000
Dhaka, Sept 25 (UNB) – Sonali Bank today decided to withdraw restrictions on opening back-to-back LCs facilitating 27 garment factories to execute export order directly. The bank imposed the restrictions on the factories, 15 in Chittagong and 12 in Dhaka, due to overdue loans for which the factories could not execute direct export order for long. The decision was taken in a meeting between Sonali Bank and Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) at the bank’s head office, meeting sources said. Chaired by bank’s managing director Enamul Huq Chowdhury, the meeting was attended by BGMEA vice-president Anisul Huq and senior bank and BGMEA officials. Sonali Bank managing director agreed to transfer the amount of interest to block accounts without interest, which should be paid by the defaulter factories within two years. The interest amount accumulated 3-4 times of the principal. The principal loan amounts with a nominal rate of interest (packing credit rate) will be deducted from the export proceeds. As per the decisions, the defaulter factories will have to resume their accounts with the respective branches of Sonali Bank depositing a down payments at a rate of 5-10 per cent of the total credits, sources said. The factories were forced to borrow from the bank branches following stock lot as an outcome of political instability and 1998 flooding, said a BGMEA statement today. Anisul Huq appreciated the decision and hoped that other commercial banks would also give big hands to the RMG sector as the Sonali did. |