Sonali Bank lends National Bank Tk7,000cr as withdrawal requests hit similar amount in 3 days

State-owned Sonali Bank has lent Tk7,000 crore to financially distressed private lender National Bank at 10pc interest for three months, backed by a 100pc guarantee from Bangladesh Bank.

Meanwhile, National Bank has received withdrawal applications totalling nearly Tk7,000 crore over the past three days from depositors with more than Tk1 lakh in their accounts, said the bank’s Chairman Melita Mehjabeen.

The bank has been accepting applications from such depositors since 11 October to assess their demand for funds.

“From 15 October, sufficient cash will be available at every branch and ATM booth. We are taking applications from customers with deposits exceeding Tk1 lakh to understand their demand for funds.

This will also help restore confidence, as customers want to see whether the bank can return their money,” she told.