The number of bank accounts holding deposits above one crore taka, and the total value of those deposits, has increased across Bangladesh’s banks. In the second quarter of this year (April-June), the number of such accounts rose by 5,077. Deposits in these accounts grew by 16,498 crore taka over the same period. However, while the number of individual-class millionaire accounts rose during this time, the deposit amount in those accounts actually fell. All of the overall deposit growth came from institutional accounts.
According to central bank data, the country’s banking sector had a total of 186,384,588 deposit accounts by the end of June. Of these, 141,562 accounts held deposits of more than one crore up to over 50 crore taka. At the end of March, the number of accounts with deposits above one crore taka stood at 136,485. In other words, the number of such accounts grew by 5,077 over three months.
A large share of the fresh deposits that entered banks over these three months went into millionaire accounts. At the end of March, the amount held in these accounts stood at 859,162 crore taka. By the end of June, that had risen to 875,660 crore taka — meaning deposits in these accounts grew by 16,498 crore taka over three months.
An analysis of Bangladesh Bank data shows that, as of the end of June, there were 40,701 individual-class bank accounts holding deposits above one crore taka, with 90,131 crore taka held in those accounts. At the end of March, there were 40,630 such individual accounts, holding deposits of 91,352 crore taka. In other words, while the number of individual millionaire accounts grew by 71 over three months, deposits in those accounts fell by 1,221 crore taka.
This Bangladesh Bank data, however, includes accounts held by various government and private institutions alongside individual accounts. Those familiar with the matter say gas, electricity and energy shortages are hampering investment in new industrial plants and the expansion of existing businesses in the country. High interest rates and economic uncertainty have compounded this, discouraging institutions from making fresh investments. In particular, the tendency to keep working capital, business transaction funds and temporarily idle cash in banks has increased among institutions. As a result, institutions are keeping a larger share of their available funds in banks, driving up deposits in institutional bank accounts.
They further said that at the individual level, high inflation and rising living costs have reduced people’s capacity to save. As a result, even as individual-class deposits have fallen, the relatively greater tendency among institutions to keep cash in banks has driven up both the number of millionaire accounts and the overall deposit amount.