Staff Reporter :
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has welcomed the recent rise in Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves but said it will review whether the central bank’s actions align with the country’s exchange rate policy.
An IMF mission is scheduled to visit Bangladesh this month to conduct the fifth review of the conditions tied to the $5.5 billion loan programme.
Thomas Helbling, deputy director of the IMF’s Asia and Pacific Department, told media in Hong Kong that discussions with authorities will take place on-site, with outcomes yet to be determined.
“Accumulating reserves to reduce balance of payments vulnerabilities is a key objective of the IMF-supported programme.
The central bank’s success in this regard is welcome,” Helbling said, noting that the mission will also examine whether the methods used are consistent with Bangladesh Bank’s declared exchange rate regime.
According to IMF calculations, Bangladesh’s foreign exchange reserves reached $27.35 billion as of October 16, up from $19.93 billion a year earlier.
The increase reflects higher inflows than outflows, supported by the central bank’s market interventions.
Bangladesh Bank has faced persistent challenges since mid-2021, when reserves fell due to rising imports.
Between FY21 and FY25, the central bank sold over $25 billion to stabilize the forex market. To maintain stability, it shifted from a crawling peg to exchange rate flexibility in May 2025.
The taka, which lost 43 percent of its value since FY21, has shown signs of stability this year. The central bank has purchased $2.12 billion from the market since the start of the current fiscal year, benefiting from stronger remittance and export inflows.
The IMF’s upcoming mission will assess both the reserve accumulation and the policy tools used, ensuring that Bangladesh’s forex interventions support a sustainable and stable exchange rate.
This review comes as the country strengthens its external buffers while navigating a challenging global economic environment, aiming to maintain macro-financial stability and investor confidence.
