Bangladesh received inward remittances of USD $2.16 billion in February, which is the highest in 8 months (July-February) in the current fiscal year 2023-24.
According to the provisional data of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) revealed on Sunday, the expatriates sent $2.16 billion remittance to the country through the legal channel. In the previous month January, the expatriates had sent $2.10 billion in remittances.
Bangladesh has received so far $13.26 billion in inward remittances in the first eight months of the year through the legal channel.
Md Mezbaul Haque, BB spokesperson, told UNB that inward remittances flow increased in the legal channel as the government and banks are providing incentives.
He said the central bank instructed banks to provide additional incentives from their financial sources, which keeps a role in increasing the flow of inward remittances in the legal channel.
With the government`s 2.5 percent incentive on expatriate income, banks can buy dollars at an additional 2.5 percent higher price. A total of 5 percent is getting incentives. As a result, remittances are coming to the country through legal channels.
The executive director of the private research institute South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM) Prof Dr. Selim Raihan said that a total of 5 percent incentive on remittances will help to boost remittances temporarily. But there will be no long-term solution.
Dr. Raihan said,”To increase remittances, hundi should be stopped. If you want to stop hundi, you have to stop money laundering. Now a lot of money is being smuggled abroad. It has to be controlled by any means.”
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