Bangladesh Bank on Monday purchased $353 million from 26 commercial banks at an exchange rate of Tk 121.75 per dollar, marking its largest single-day intervention in recent weeks.
The standout contributor was Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC (IBBL), which sold $90 million, making it the top seller of the day.
The sales injected approximately Tk 10.96 billion into the bank’s balance sheet and underscored their dominant role in supplying foreign exchange liquidity to the market.
Other banks also played significant roles. Trust Bank ranked second, selling $40 million. Bank Asia, Krishi Bank, and Eastern Bank each contributed $20 million, while Dhaka Bank, HSBC, and Mutual Trust Bank sold $15 million apiece.
Together, these transactions highlight the broad participation of both local and foreign-owned institutions in supporting the central bank’s reserve-building drive.
With Monday’s purchases, Bangladesh’s reserves rose to $30.887 billion as of September 15, recovering from $30.31 billion earlier in the month after a $1.5 billion Asian Clearing Union settlement.
The central bank has now bought nearly $1.8 billion since mid-July, reversing a trend of dollar sales that had sharply reduced reserves in recent years.
Between 2022 and 2024, Bangladesh Bank sold more than $30 billion to cover costly imports of fuel, food, and raw materials amid high global prices. That intervention brought reserves down from a record $48 billion in 2021 to below $27 billion late last year.
By switching to the buy side, the central bank aims not only to restore its reserve buffer but also to keep the taka from appreciating too strongly, which could undercut exporters and reduce the incentive for remittance inflows.
Market data suggest the interventions are stabilizing the exchange rate. The taka, which strengthened to Tk 119.73 per dollar in mid-July, has since settled into a narrow range between Tk 121.61 and Tk 121.86.
On Monday, the weighted average stood at Tk 121.75, in line with the central bank’s intervention price.
