Bengal Commercial Bank gets BB approval

Bengal Commercial Bank, was proposed to be set up by the Bengal Group of Industries. The Bangladesh Bank has given its final okay to Bengal Commercial Bank, bringing the number of scheduled banks in the country to 60. Bengal Commercial Bank, was proposed to be set up by the Bengal Group of Industries. The central bank board of directors approved the new bank at a meeting held at Bangladesh Bank headquarters on Sunday. Bangladesh Bank Governor Fazle Kabir presided over the meeting. "The bank will run with 17 sponsor directors and three independent directors. Bengal Group of Industries Vice Chairman Md Jashim Uddin will act as the chairman of the bank," said Bangladesh Bank Executive Director and spokesperson Md Serajul Islam. On October 29, 2018, the central bank approved Community Bank Bangladesh and rejected proposals for three other banks lacking adequate documents to be eligible for licences. Bangladesh Police Welfare Trust owns Community Bank Bangladesh. Economist and former finance adviser to a caretaker government, AB Mirza Azizul Islam, told Dhaka Tribune: "There is no logic to approving more banks. We should think of laws to force mergers for the existing ones, rather than establishing new banks." "The number of banks is already high," he added. The financial health of the nine banks which got licences in 2013 is poor, with one of those currently on "life support," a senior Bangladesh Bank official said.