This time each year the external auditor knocks on the door of limited liability companies making staff and executives anxious. Sadly, the utility of this elaborate exercise-a legal requirement-is questioned by many. Investors do not put much store on audits, perhaps doubting its credibility. Many

Lightcastle Partners and sheba.xyz recently carried out a survey on small and medium enterprises (SME) in Bangladesh to gauge the damage done by the pandemic on them. The facts are sobering. The thrust of this article, however, is a proposal to set up a technology-enabled exchange where lenders (ba

Mutual funds, being staid relatives of common shares, do not generate much excitement among ordinary investors. To put it in context, assets under management (AUM) of the 98 mutual funds in the country is BDT 188.47 billion currently, comprising 4.2 per cent of the market capitalisation of all secu

Financial security during old-age affects almost everyone. Bangladeshis, who can afford, tend to acquire property. While this strategy may increase wealth, especially in view of rising prices, the income stream may either not be regular, or adequate. Moreover, repair and maintenance costs and prop

Bangladesh Bank has recently published its annual monetary policy statement (MPS). One reads into the language a misplaced belief in a quick rebound (V-shaped recovery) of the economy from the pandemic. But observers worldwide have said it is not known how this pandemic will play out. Economic acti

A major change is underway in Bangladesh's banking sector. Such was the view expressed by experts at a recent webinar. According to them, a chain of events will compel banks to become lean and efficient. The drivers are: technology, consumer preference, and competition from alternative delivery cha

The country's banking system, already creaking under bad debts and other irregularities, now faces unprecedented challenges as the ongoing pandemic takes its toll on the economy. Economic problems, when they fester and get compounded, affect social cohesion. This new reality is making senior bank e

Change, especially technological, is a fact of contemporary life. In fact, it is hiding in plain sight if we care to look. The one-day Fintech Summit, dealing with technological advances in the financial sector, must have ended in Dhaka by the time this article goes to press is a testament. Among t