Bangladesh Bank has withdrawn the requirement for importers to maintain a 100 percent cash margin when opening letters of credit for fruit imports. In a circular issued on Sunday and reported on August 16, 2026, the central bank said cash-margin rates for fruit import LCs can now be set based on the relationship between banks and their customers.

The bank said the decision considered public health and nutrition needs, import facilitation, and ensuring necessary supplies through a competitive market. It also cited improving desired stability in the country’s foreign-exchange rate and transactions in recent times, saying this had reduced the need for a full cash-margin requirement on fruit imports.

A September 5, 2024 circular had required 100 percent cash margins for LCs involving certain luxury goods and domestically substitutable imports amid global economic instability; fruit was included in that list. Bangladesh Bank said other provisions of the 2024 circular and subsequent related instructions remain unchanged. The decision is expected to reduce importers’ immediate cash needs and ease import financing, while potentially increasing fruit supply and competition in the market.