Editorial

Ending the culture  of free bonuses

Ending the culture  of free bonuses

The new guidelines issued by the Financial Institutions Division for incentive bonuses of state-owned banks and financial institutions are driven as much by the aim of linking rewards to actual performance as by the broader need to bring discipline and accountability to a troubled sector. For a lon

Creating unified regulatory authority for auditors

Creating unified regulatory authority for auditors

The function of any regulator is to ensure that the stakeholders concerned follow the set of rules that guides their activities and does not fall afoul of it. Also, it holds those breaking the rules to account and, at the same time, ensures the overall quality of the professional output. But if the

From blazes to infernos

From blazes to infernos

First, the fire originating from a chemical warehouse at Shialbari, Mirpur on Tuesday last gulped 16 lives in an adjacent four-storey apparel factory to which it spread. Then on Thursday a fire gutted Adams Caps and Textile Ltd housed in a seven-storey building in the Chittagong Export Processing Z

Making money loan court effective

Making money loan court effective

The classified loans in the country's banking sector have soared to an all-time high of Tk 4.20 trillion as of March 2025, now accounting for 24.13 per cent of total outstanding loans. This staggering volume of Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) and its continued rise are weighing heavily on the financial

Hard lessons from 2025 HSC results

Hard lessons from 2025 HSC results

The sharp fall in the 2025 HSC and equivalent examinations pass rate to its lowest level in twenty years, though deeply distressing, seems to have been accepted by both educators and the public with a weary sense of inevitability. The overall pass rate of 58.83 per cent at this critical stage of ed


Reining in defiant edible oil companies

Reining in defiant edible oil companies

Unilaterally announcing a fresh hike in edible oil prices last week, the refining companies have clearly defied the government's position on the issue as the Commerce Adviser on Tuesday last denied having approved any such price hike. This hike in oil prices has taken place exactly three weeks afte

Addressing NTBs to cement partnership with EU

Addressing NTBs to cement partnership with EU

While Bangladesh has long focused on removing non-tariff barriers (NTBs) in other countries to facilitate its exports, it now finds itself facing similar demands from the European Union (EU) -- its largest trading partner. The EU has formally asked Dhaka to eliminate a number of trade- and investme

Mirpur fire: Illegal chemical depot, yet again, responsible

Mirpur fire: Illegal chemical depot, yet again, responsible

Once again a devastating fire originating from an unauthorised chemical warehouse has claimed at least 16 lives. This time the tragedy happened not in the infamous areas of old Dhaka but in Mirpur's Shialbari area. All 16 people died in a garment factory housed in a four-storey building next to the

Law to ensure data security, privacy of citizens

Law to ensure data security, privacy of citizens

In this data-driven digital age, the challenge of safeguarding personal information from unauthorized access and use is daunting. Reports of data breach leading to loss of sensitive data on financial transactions, medical history, biometric information, to name but a few, abound. Against this backd

VAT waiver on local procurement

VAT waiver on local procurement

When competition is a key to staying in business, Bangladesh is in a dire need for exploring all the avenues for enhancing its competitive edge as much as possible. The scenario following graduation from the Least Developed Countries (LDC) makes it further incumbent on this country to go whole hog

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