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The Securities and Exchange Rules, 2020 have been amended to allow stock-brokers and dealers to keep 75% of the interest earned on client funds held in their Consolidated Customer Accounts (CCA). The remaining 25% must be remitted every six months to the Investors’ Protection Fund of the relevant bourse.

Key provisions of the amendment, gazetted on July 3, include:

• Brokers must deposit their 25% share of CCA interest into the Investors’ Protection Fund within 30 days of each half-year period’s end.
• Each deposit must be reported to the exchange and the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission, complete with calculation details and supporting documentation, within 10 days of payment.

Previously, brokers were required to allocate all interest income back to clients—a process they argued was administratively burdensome. Before 2021, they had full discretion over interest earned on customer balances. The new framework strikes a balance between operational simplicity for brokers and strengthened financial safeguards for investors.