Bangladesh Bank to inject more liquidity into National Bank to repay depositors

Bangladesh Bank (BB) will inject fresh liquidity into the troubled National Bank Ltd (NBL) to help the lender repay its depositors.

The decision came at a meeting between the central bank and the board of directors of NBL today at the central bank's headquarters in Dhaka. The private bank incurred nearly Tk 9,000 crore in losses in four years since 2022.

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In 2025, NBL suffered a loss of Tk 2,430 crore, which is 41 percent higher than the previous year's loss of Tk 1,722 crore, according to its annual report.

The private bank's non-performing loan ratio to total outstanding loans stood at 59.69 percent at the end of 2025, according to its annual report.

At today's meeting, BB Governor Md Mostaqur Rahman said protecting depositors would remain the regulator's priority and that the central bank would provide liquidity support so customers can access their funds.

He said the central bank had recently taken note of the bank's liquidity position and depositors' demands to withdraw their money, according to a press release.

He directed that necessary steps be taken to protect depositors' interests, maintain public confidence in banking, and keep operations running smoothly.

He also directed all branches and ATM booths of National Bank to ensure an adequate cash supply from October 15 so depositors can withdraw money on demand.

National Bank Chairman Melita Mehjabeen told the governor that the central bank's recent measures had made good governance possible at the bank, and that positive changes had been made in senior management to improve its efficiency and capability.

The decision comes after four depositors of the bank approached the High Court last month seeking access to their savings.

NBL, one of the oldest private banks in Bangladesh, is one of the lenders that received uncollateralised liquidity support from BB over the last several years as it suffers from a fund shortage amid high non-performing loans.

As of early June 2026, BB had provided Tk 76,000 crore ($6.2 billion) as liquidity support to weak banks, said Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury in parliament earlier.

NBL received Tk 10,568 crore from the central bank.

The largest share of the support went to First Security Islami Bank, with outstanding borrowing of Tk 15,810 crore. BB also provided Tk 12,010 crore to EXIM Bank, Tk 10,841 crore to Social Islami Bank, Tk 5,420 crore to Union Bank and Tk 5,000 crore to Premier Bank.

The central bank also lent Tk 4,270 crore to AB Bank, Tk 3,003 crore to Global Islami Bank and Tk 624 crore to Bangladesh Commerce Bank. It also provided around Tk 9,000 crore in liquidity support to Islami Bank, said the minister in parliament.

Besides, BB extended liquidity support to ICB Islamic Bank, Padma Bank and BASIC Bank.