Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and Swisscontact Bangladesh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 17 May 2026 to advance sustainable and inclusive economic development through the country’s capital market, said a press release. The partnership aims to strengthen SME participation by providing capacity-building, corporate governance, and compliance support.
The signing ceremony in Dhaka was attended by DSE Managing Director Nuzhat Anwar and Swisscontact Bangladesh Country Director Helal Hossain, along with senior officials from both organisations. Nuzhat Anwar said mutual coordination and clear planning would allow the initiative to be implemented rapidly, contributing significantly to SME sector development.
Helal Hossain said SMEs, despite being a key driver of Bangladesh’s economy, face financing, competitiveness, and compliance challenges. “Creating opportunities for alternative financing and equity-based capital raising is extremely important,” he said, noting the partnership will help promising SMEs become capital-market ready.
Under the MoU, both organisations will work across strategic sectors including ready-made garments, healthcare, and agriculture. They will jointly focus on environment, social and governance practices, sustainability reporting, entrepreneurial development, financial inclusion, climate resilience, trade facilitation, and capacity development.
The programme will also run awareness workshops, capacity-building sessions, incubation support, and advisory services to encourage greater capital-market participation. Both organisations will collaborate on sustainable financing products such as green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds, sukuk, and blended-finance models.
The MoU highlights Bangladesh’s push to foster a more inclusive capital market, create alternative financing opportunities, and enhance SME access to equity-based capital, said the press release.
