20 businesses get nod for $326m foreign loan for expansion

Date: June 21, 2022

Source: The Business Standard

 

Large groups, such as Akij, Beximco Group, Abul Khair, and Envoy, are now going to expand their businesses with foreign loans, signalling good times for Bangladesh's economy even at this time of global uncertainty caused by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

This month at least 20 such companies have secured approval from the scrutiny committee of the Board of Investment, chaired by Bangladesh Bank governor, for getting loans to the tune of $352 million, equivalent to Tk3,275 crore, from different foreign banks and multilateral agencies.

Most business entities that got the go-ahead for external loans are the textile and spinning industries. Besides, there are companies from steel, power, food processing, plastics and ceramics sectors.

Some 11 companies will spend $326 million of the external loans approved on 5 June on importing capital machinery to implement their new investment plans, according to minutes of the loan scrutiny committee.

Besides, eight companies, which imported capital machinery with foreign loans to expand their business during the pandemic but could not make repayments on time, have now had their loans amounting to $25.43 million approved for maturity date extensions under refinancing facility.

Mobile operator Banglalink Digital Communication Ltd has obtained approval of $200 million in loan from the committee to improve its quality of services across the country.

Earlier the telecom operator said it had a plan to roll out 3,000 new base stations by the end of the current year to improve the quality of service across the country. It planned to invest around Tk4,870 crore in its network over the next 4 years to further improve and expand its service to cover more than 90% of the population nationwide and be fully competitive with the other two private mobile operators.

Banglalink will import capital machinery and equipment from China's ZTE Corporation, a global leader in telecommunication and information technology.

In April this year, the company secured a five-year syndicated term loan of Tk1,200 crore. In a statement earlier, Banglalink claimed that under the signed agreement it will utilise STE's best-in-class products and technology solutions to enhance its network capacity over the next five years.

VEON, the parent company of Banglalink, invested through foreign direct investment accumulated around $1 billion, which was one of the highest amounts since independence of Bangladesh.