Bangladesh Bank has decided to provide a 4 percent annual profit rate to depositors of five banks currently undergoing a merger process for the years 2024 and 2025. The central bank communicated this decision to the administrators of the five banks through an official letter issued on Wednesday. This move replaces an earlier decision to suspend profit payments for the same period, which had sparked strong dissatisfaction among depositors.

According to a directive from the Bank Regulation Department, the earlier suspension of profit on fixed-term deposits under the Islamic Bank Company formation and expansion regulations has been reconsidered. The revision came following appeals from depositors and to maintain normal banking operations. Under the new decision, the 4 percent profit rate will apply to personal (non-institutional) deposits from January 1, 2024, to December 28, 2025.

Banks have been instructed to recalculate deposit balances as of the last working day of 2025 and submit revised statements to the central bank within three working days. If any depositor has already received a higher profit, the excess will be adjusted against future earnings, while previous instructions remain valid for deposits not covered by the new decision.