Salekeen Ibrahim

Bangladesh has been suffering from a mix of micro and macroeconomic pressures since August 2024. The banking sector, already weakened over many years, is now in trouble, marked by a capital shortfall, soaring non-performing loans (NPLs), and corruption.

The national economy of Bangladesh is facing one of its toughest tests in decades. The provisional GDP growth for this fiscal year is only 3.97 percent, the lowest in 34 years apart from the pandemic period. It is true that a sluggish growth rate can have different interpretations when compared with previous years, but few can deny the adverse state of many economic indicators even after more than a year of the interim government.

Private sector credit growth fell to 6.4 percent in June 2025, the lowest in 22 years. This alarming number reflects the immense strain on the national economy, a slump not seen since the early 2000s. But the fading momentum goes beyond statistics. It is a pulse check on our economic strength, and the social cost of falling credit is immense.

The economy of Bangladesh is currently undergoing several reforms and adjustments. However, in recent times, currency devaluation and rising inflation have shaken households, small businesses and industries, forcing painful changes at every level. Many are asking how this devaluation affects the people, and how stability can be regained.

Cottage, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (CMSMEs), although being key contributors to Bangladesh’s national GDP growth, remain stifled by limited access to finance, markets, and digital tools.

In Bangladesh, we cannot think of a holistic economy without attending to the CMSME sector. From rural artisans to urban tech start-ups, CMSMEs are everywhere, creating jobs, generating income, and driving inclusive growth. Over the past decade, it is evident that the Bangladesh Bank, along with private commercial banks, has made significant strides in improving access to finance. This effort continues to evolve.

Our country has long been recognised for its abundant labour force. In addition, this abundance has often been labelled as “cheap labour”, a term that underscores a missed opportunity for a prospective nation.

Bangladesh is on the verge of graduating from the least developed country (LDC) category in 2026, which will be a significant milestone in the history of its economic journey.

Years of corruption, mismanagement, fragile governance and bank looting have left several banks in distress in Bangladesh.

Remarkably, the pandemic has acted as a blessing for digital services and dramatically transformed our financial setting, steering it in a nature where digital banking has renewed as an easy solution in our everyday lives.

Since the country’s independence in 1971, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have played a pivotal role in GDP growth, employment, income generation, and local development.

Starting from the pandemic in 2020, Bangladesh as a nation has gone through a number of incidents in the last five years followed by the Ukraine war, interest rate capping, dollar crisis, high inflation, sluggish GDP growth, banking sector exploitation, intense corruption in different layers and lastly the political changeover in August.

Talking about any industry from anywhere on the globe, customer loyalty stands as the foundation for a stable and long-term business venture. Considering Bangladesh, where market dynamics are very complex and rapidly evolving, nurturing customer loyalty is more crucial.

The banking sector of Bangladesh has expanded over the years in terms of the number of formal financial institutes and types of financing instruments and products available in the country.

Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government on August 5, Bangladesh as a nation finds itself at a critical crossroads. The subsequent political turmoil has left the country’s financial sector in a fragile position, calling for urgent strategic plans and decisive execution of ideas by the interim government. As Bangladesh stands on the brink of graduating from least developed country (LDC) status in 2026, the priorities of the interim government must be clear.

In general, e-commerce is the exchange of goods and services, and the transmission of funds and data over internet. It is governed by technology and digital platforms, including websites, mobile apps and social media, which make buying and selling more feasible.

The temptation to prioritise quick profits over long-term sustainability and ethics is predominant.

The word brand means a product, service or concept that is evidently distinguished from other products, services or concepts so that it can be simply communicated and frequently marketed.

Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), thanks to their entrepreneurial spirit and agility, have emerged as the heart of the growing economy of Bangladesh and the backbone of the financial ecosystem.

In the thriving economy of Bangladesh, expanding the startup ecosystem and the quest for financial bootstrapping methods stands as one of the fundamental gateways to success.