Published: 11:34 PM, 04 October 2026
We have terminated IMF deal: Amir Khosru
Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has said that Bangladesh will cancel the loan agreement it had signed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) during the previous Awami League government to address the shortage of foreign currency reserves.
Speaking at an event in the capital on Sunday, he said Bangladesh would no longer accept any conditions imposed by the IMF.
"The IMF will give us money, the World Bank will give us money-forget about it. I have terminated the IMF program, as you have seen. Their conditions are not acceptable to us."
After several rounds of negotiations since 2022 to address the country's financial crisis, Bangladesh signed a $4.7 billion loan agreement with the IMF in early 2023. Later, during the interim government's tenure, the amount was increased to $5.5 billion.
Bangladesh received the first tranche of $476.3 million in February 2023. So far, the country has received $3.64 billion in five tranches.
After negotiations over the release of the sixth tranche remained stalled for a year, discussions on the IMF's loan conditions resumed after the BNP government came to power in February. The government proposed to the IMF that Bangladesh exit the existing program and take a new loan.
While discussions were underway with expectations of securing $4 billion to $4.5 billion over three years under a new program, the IMF formally stated on June 3 that Bangladesh had applied for a new lending program.
However, the IMF did not provide any information about the size of the proposed loan. To determine the terms of the new loan, the IMF sent a mission to assess the current state of Bangladesh's economy and the government's position on reforms.
Amid those ongoing discussions, the finance minister said on Sunday at the inaugural ceremony of "World Investor Week 2026" at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh (KIB) auditorium in the capital, "We have cancelled the IMF loan agreement and taken the initiative to stand on our own feet. Bangladesh's economy will reach $1 trillion by 2034 without assistance from donor agencies."
The minister said the government did not want to depend on financing from institutions such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the IMF.
Declaring that "the days of dependence" on these international financing institutions were over, he said, "We are changing Bangladesh's financial architecture, public finance architecture, and private-sector financing system. The World Bank, ADB and IMF will provide money and we will run the country-that will no longer happen."
Advising that the capital market and bond market should be developed as important alternatives for obtaining lower-cost financing instead of taking high-interest loans from banks, the finance minister said, "The capital market is the answer, the bond market is the answer."
Outlining plans to give greater importance to the capital market for financing future infrastructure projects, Amir Khosru said the government was also working on bringing the Padma Bridge and Jamuna Bridge into the capital market.
The finance minister said, "I am going to the market, I am going to get my money."
Saying that the government was "sincerely working" to develop the capital market, Amir Khosru said, "The face of Bangladesh's capital market will change within a year. If an accident happens, I cannot say anything about that."
Tanvir Shahriar Goni, the Prime Minister's Special Assistant for Investment and Capital Market Affairs, said the government was working with the goal of bringing the country's capital market to a level comparable with other markets in the region within the next two years.
"Significant changes will come to the country's capital market over the next 12 months. Several important initiatives for capital-market reform are already underway. Discussions are taking place on introducing new products such as convertible bonds, real estate investment trusts (REITs), equity stock options, and bonds denominated in local currency."
Tanvir Goni believes that introducing these products will expand investment opportunities and deepen the market.
Masud Khan, chairman of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), which organized the event, said, "We will approve IPOs within three months. Our timeline is three months. We will approve IPOs within three months."
He said the lengthy process currently required to obtain approval after submitting an IPO application would be significantly shortened under the new system.
"No new company has been listed on the market for the past two and a half years. We cannot allow this drought to continue for much longer," he said.
Describing various measures taken as part of capital-market reforms, including the restructuring of the board of Beximco Limited, Masud Khan said, "Through various measures taken by the commission, efforts are being made to restore confidence in the market."
During a panel discussion, Dhaka Stock Exchange Chairman Mominul Islam said that regardless of the reforms undertaken in the capital market, restoring investor confidence was now "the biggest challenge."
Finance Ministry Financial Institutions Division Secretary Nazma Mubarek and Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) Chairman Mir Nadia Nivin were also present at the event.
>> Bernard Priyam, AA
