Record-Breaking Remittance: $1.42 Billion Sent in Just 16 Days

The flow of remittance through legal channels in Bangladesh continues to strengthen. In the first 16 days of July alone, expatriates sent $1.42 billion to the country, marking a 7.70% increase compared to the same period last year. This information has been sourced from Bangladesh Bank.

During the same period last year, the country received $1.319 billion in remittance. The current growth reflects the effectiveness of incentives and a growing interest among expatriates to send money home through formal banking channels.

According to data from the central bank, Bangladesh received a record $30.04 billion in remittances in the just-concluded fiscal year 2024–25 — the highest in the country’s history. In the previous fiscal year (2023–24), the figure stood at $23.74 billion, indicating nearly a 26% year-on-year increase.

With remittance and export earnings rising and imports relatively low, the demand for the U.S. dollar has declined. This has led to a slight depreciation in the value of the dollar. To stabilize the exchange rate, Bangladesh Bank has been purchasing dollars from commercial banks through auctions. Last Sunday, it bought $171 million, followed by another $480 million on Tuesday and Wednesday combined.

Bangladesh Bank's assessment suggests that the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar will likely remain between Tk 120 and Tk 125 for now. On Thursday, banks traded dollars between Tk 121.20 and Tk 121.30, while the day before it was traded at Tk 120.70 to Tk 121.20. In early June, the rate hovered between Tk 122.80 and Tk 123, indicating no major volatility.

Bank officials noted that with the easing of pressure in the foreign exchange market, it may now be time to relax import restrictions. They also suggested removing the additional conditions imposed on the import of luxury goods. According to them, lifting these curbs would help boost imports and revive overall trade and commerce.