AC holders with crore taka belong 43pc of deposit

Rafiqul Islam Azad: The number of accounts with deposits in crores of taka is steadily increasing in the country’s banks, despite the ongoing financial crisis, rising commodity prices, and inflationary pressures. At the end of June last year, the number of these depositors in banks had risen to 113,000. According to the updated report from the Bangladesh Bank, the amount held by these depositors represents 43.36 percent of the total money deposited in the banks.
Meanwhile, data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) reveals that after gaining independence in 1972, there were only five depositors with crores of taka in the country. By 1975, this number had increased to 47. In 1980, the number of these account holders was 98, which then grew to 943 in 1990, 2,594 in 1996, 5,162 in 2001, 8,887 in 2006, and 19,163 in 2008.
According to BBS data, at the end of 2020, the number of account holders with crores of taka stood at 93,890. By December 2021, it had increased to 100,000, and as of December 2022, the number of such accounts was 109,946.
According to statistics from the Bangladesh Bank, the total number of depositors in the banking sector as of June 2023 is 145,971,192, with a total deposit of Tk 1,687,024 crore. Of these, 113,554 accounts hold deposits of more than one crore taka, amounting to approximately Tk 731,133 crores.
In the first quarter of this year (January-March), the number of depositors in the banking sector was 141,137,256, with a total deposit of Tk 1,613,626 crore. Of these, 110,192 depositors held more than one crore taka. According to the data, within three months, the number of account holders with more than one crore taka increased by 3,362. Additionally, the number of such accounts increased by 5,097 within a year.

According to central bank data, as of June 2023, the number of accounts with deposit amounts between one crore and 5 crore taka has reached 89,772, with a total deposit of Tk 186,708 crore. There are 12,245 account holders with Tk 5 crore to Tk 10 crore, with a total deposit of Tk 86,631 crores.

Furthermore, there are 4,081 accounts with deposit amounts of Tk 10 crores to 15 crores, 1,865 accounts with deposit amounts between 15 crores and 20 crores, 1,276 accounts with deposit amounts between 20 crores and 25 crores, and 909 accounts with deposit amounts between 25 crores and 30 crores. There are also 507 accounts with deposit amounts between 30 crores and 35 crores, 353 accounts with deposit amounts between 35 crores and 40 crores, and 722 accounts with deposit amounts between 40 crores and 50 crores. Moreover, the number of accounts with deposits exceeding Tk 50 crore is only 1,824.

Experts have observed that various crises and rising commodity prices in recent times have placed a significant burden on the lower and middle classes. Common people are struggling to cover their family’s expenses, and many small companies are finding it difficult to conduct business.

In such a situation, saving money in a bank has become a challenge, leading many people to deplete their existing savings. However, a certain class of people, including wealthy individuals and large corporations, have experienced an increase in income, they said.

Meanwhile, a central bank official has pointed out that having an account with crores of taka does not necessarily indicate that the account holder is a millionaire. Besides individuals, many institutions maintain accounts with more than one crore taka in the bank.

“Furthermore, there is no specific limit on the number of bank accounts that individuals and organizations can open. Consequently, one organization or individual may have multiple accounts, including accounts held by various government institutions and organizations with substantial sums of taka,” the official explained.