The interest rate on loans from banks in October has been set at 10.20 per cent as per Bangladesh Bank’s formula.

The method, based on which the interest rate is now being determined, is known as SMART or Six Months Moving Average Rate of Treasury Bills. Bangladesh Bank informs of this rate at the beginning of every month.

The new interest rate determining method was introduced on July 1, 2023. Earlier, from April 2020, the maximum interest rate on bank loans was 9 per cent.

Accordingly, in the current month of October, banks can take a maximum of 10.20 per cent interest on large-scale industrial loans.

On the other hand, non-banking financial institutions can charge interest against loans by adding a margin at a maximum rate of 5 per cent. Their maximum interest rate will be 12.20 per cent and 9.20 per cent on deposits. However, the loan interest rate set in October cannot be changed within the next six months.

This will make the highest interest rate on agricultural loans in September 9.14 per cent. An additional 1 per cent supervision charge can be levied on CMSME, personal, and car purchase loans.

Bangladesh Bank publishes the six-month average interest rate of 182-day treasury bills from January this year. Last January, the smart rate was 6.96 per cent. After that, it gradually increased every month and reached 7.13 per cent last May. But in June and July, it decreased slightly to 7.10 per cent.

However, it increased to 7.14 per cent in August and reached 7.20 per cent in September.

On the advice of the International Monetary Fund, Bangladesh Bank introduced a market-based interest rate system.

The interest rate cap of 9 per cent was imposed from April 2020 to facilitate traders.

A research report by the central bank also recommends withdrawing or increasing the interest rate limit. But Bangladesh Bank was silent as the government did not give positive consent.

One of the conditions of IMF’s $$4.7 billion loan is to make the interest rate market-based. In light of that condition, the new interest rate system was introduced.