Banking sector distressed by reform failure: key economist

Bangladesh Bank's banking reform roadmap is nothing new, but failures to implement it has distressed the sector, said eminent economist Wahiduddin Mahmud.

"I have previously been involved with two banking reforms, so I am aware of them and implementations, but influential groups prevented its inclusion in the banking law," said Mahmud at the launch of the fifth edition of Banking AImanac at the National Press Club on Dhaka today.

"Implementation is difficult when we don't know what the previous regulation lacked," said Mahmud, also a former adviser to the caretaker government.

Mahmud remarked that it's not always wise to follow the recommendations of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, as the situation in Bangladesh is vastly different from other countries.

"Maximum limits must be set on interest rates, otherwise weak banks will not get deposits, causing risks to businesses."

The banking sector is the heart of the economy, yet its "sorry state" is known to everyone, he added.