Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Ahsan H Mansur has said that meaningful reform in the country's banking sector cannot be achieved without fundamental political change. Echoing similar concerns voiced by Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed, the governor emphasized that no policy alone can strengthen the sector in the absence of qualitative improvements in the country’s political environment.
"Without political transformation, no reform policy will bring about lasting stability in the banking sector," Mansur stated during a press conference held at his office in Dhaka on Monday.
His comments follow remarks made on Saturday by Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed, who asserted that significant reform of the banking sector is not feasible under an interim administration. “Only an elected government will be able to carry out the necessary changes after coming to power,” Ahmed said.
Despite these political challenges, Governor Mansur highlighted that Bangladesh Bank has already launched a major initiative aimed at fundamentally transforming the country’s supervisory framework for banks. Describing the initiative as "time-befitting," he said it is designed to modernize and professionalize the central bank’s oversight capacity.
As part of this reform effort, BB is introducing a risk-based supervision system, which will officially come into effect on January 1, 2026. The governor noted that pilot testing for the new framework has already been completed with 20 banks, and it will be rolled out to all 61 scheduled banks by December 31, 2025.
To support this initiative, the central bank will establish 12 supervisory committees, one in each administrative division. These regional committees will be tasked with monitoring banking activities and ensuring regulatory compliance across the country.
Governor Mansur said the goal is to develop a supervisory regime that is skilled, effective, and aligned with international best practices, ultimately ensuring greater resilience and accountability in Bangladesh’s banking system.
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