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Bengali 
In a new development, the government of Bangladesh has changed the interest rates of five National Savings Schemes to align with the current market rates. This is the first of its kind move that such an adjustment has been made by the Bangladeshi government. So, people of Bangladesh who invest in these schemes can now earn more interest on their savings.
The notification was issued on 15 January 2025 by the Internal Resources Division of the Ministry of Finance and has taken effect since 1 January this year. It signifies that if citizens buy a savings certificate from this date, they will get the new, higher interest rates. These new rates are valid only for six months, which means January 2025 to June 2025. The new interest rates will change every six months to keep up with what is happening in the market.
This move comes at a time when the government of Bangladesh is going through a financial crunch. This is because the government is not collecting the required tax revenue as expected. It is leading to investors from other nations taking their money out of Bangladesh. Thus, the government is spending a lot of money to pay back its existing debts. So, the government’s decision to increase interest rates on savings certificates is one way to combat the issue of elevated inflation.
Earlier, the general rule was that the more you invested, the lower the interest rate. For example, those invested Tk15 lakh got the highest rate of interest while investments above Tk30 were subject to the lowest interest rate. So now, the new notification says that there will be two investment categories:
1) Investments up to Tk7.5 lakh and 2) Investments exceeding Tk7.5 lakh.
Additionally, the interest rate for premature encashment will remain applicable at a yearly rate.
Interest rates have been increased for all the major savings certificates such as:
- Five-year Bangladesh Savings Certificate – 12.40% interest rate (earlier rate was 11.28%)
- Three-month Profit-Based Savings Certificate – 12.30 interest rate (earlier rate was 11.04%)
- Pensioners’ Savings Certificate – 12.55% (earlier rate was 11.76%)
- Family Savings Certificate – 12.50% (earlier rate was 11.28%)
Also, the interest rate on Postal Savings Bank Fixed Deposits has also been increased to 12.30% from the earlier 11.28%.
For those investors who purchased savings certificates before the new interest rates were announced will continue to earn interest rates based on the earlier rates that were applicable at the time of their investment.
As the national savings scheme acts as a safety net for vulnerable groups such as women, retired professionals, and senior citizens, among others, this strategic move will provide them with the security to save and invest their money with better returns.
