Editorial, News & commercial office:
55/A, H M Siddique Mansion (Level-7), Purana Paltan, Motijhel C/A, Dhaka-1000. Phone: +8802226640056,
e-mail: [email protected], [email protected]
To alleviate ongoing liquidity pressures, manage steep cold-chain operating expenses, and strengthen global competitiveness, Bangladesh Bank has constituted a dedicated Tk 2,000 crore pre-financing fund for the export-oriented frozen food, fisheries, and ready-to-cook processing sectors. The three-year initiative seeks to diversify the national export basket, scale up foreign currency earnings, expand rural economic growth, and generate extensive employment opportunities across coastal and processing hubs.
The central bank’s Banking Regulation and Policy Department (BRPD) issued a circular to the managing directors and chief executives of all scheduled commercial banks detailing the operating guidelines, credit ceilings, and eligibility criteria.
Under the framework, participating scheduled banks can access pre-financing liquidity from the central bank at a concessionary 4 percent interest rate, capping the end-user lending rate for eligible borrowers at a maximum of 7 percent. Direct financial facilities will be extended to processors and exporters handling frozen shrimp, fish varieties, allied aquatic products, and value-added ready-to-cook packaged foods. Borrowers classified as loan defaulters under the Bank Company Act, alongside entities currently receiving credit facilities from alternate central bank or state liquidity programs—such as the Export Development Fund (EDF), Export Facilitation Pre-finance Fund (EFPF), or dedicated agro-refinancing windows—are barred from accessing this fund for the same expenditure heads.
The credit window provides structured capital support tailored to both long-term infrastructure and short-term operational cycles:
New Plant Construction: Eligible processors can secure term loans up to Tk 30 crore with a maximum repayment tenure of seven years, including a one-year grace period.
Modernization and Expansion: Existing facilities upgrading machinery, expanding floor layouts, or renovating infrastructure can obtain term loans up to Tk 20 crore with a repayment timeline of five years, inclusive of a one-year grace period.
Working Capital Facilities: To finance raw material procurement from contract farmers, worker payroll, and utility charges, enterprises can avail working capital loans up to Tk 20 crore based on overall revenue turnover. These facilities carry a one-year tenure, renewable up to two years subject to compliant account turnover.
Promoting environmental sustainability and energy resilience, the policy mandates that participating enterprises install solar energy infrastructure to fulfill at least 15 percent of their total factory electricity demand within two years of fund disbursement. To support this transition, eligible factories can access additional green credit up to Tk 5 crore (or up to 30 percent of the principal project financing loan). Furthermore, recipient enterprises must enforce workplace safety measures to mitigate occupational health hazards for operational factory personnel.
