Written by The Banking Post
Bangladesh Bank stepped into the foreign exchange market after the dollar’s reference rate declined for four straight days, purchasing $70 million to stabilise the currency.
The dollars were bought from Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC at a cut-off rate of Tk 122.75 per US dollar, marking the first such intervention in about six weeks. Officials said the move aims to prevent a further drop in the dollar while keeping remittance inflows strong, as inflows have recently outpaced outflows.
The sale came as Islami Bank held excess foreign currency due to weak import demand. Lower openings of letters of credit (LCs) reduced the need for dollars.
“There was no liquidity pressure behind the sale,” a senior bank official said, noting that the transaction reflected subdued import appetite rather than any cash shortage.
Earlier, on March 2, the central bank bought $25 million from two commercial banks through auctions. With the latest purchase, total dollar buying in FY26 has reached $5.56 billion.
The intervention comes amid robust remittance inflows. Bangladesh recorded a historic $3.75 billion in March ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr. The trend continued in April, with $1.60 billion received between April 1 and 14—up 25.2% year-on-year.
With inflows rising and supply improving on the back of exports and remittances, the central bank has resumed dollar purchases this fiscal year. This marks a shift from FY21–FY25, when more than $25 billion was sold from reserves to meet import payments for fuel, fertiliser and food.
Following the latest move, foreign exchange reserves rose to $34.87 billion from $34.60 billion two days earlier, signalling a gradual recovery after a prolonged decline.
