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Sonali feeling the pinch

The scam-hit bank backs out of financing Biman to buy Boeing

Soh el Parvez
Sonali Bank has shelved a decision to take part in a joint financing scheme against Biman's purchase of two new aircraft from the US plane-maker Boeing on grounds of a cash crunch.
The state-owned bank, in a letter to the finance ministry, has said in present conditions it would be unable to pay the promised $10 million (Tk 81.9 crore) by taking part in the syndicated financing of $80 million for Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
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Currently, the bank faces an average deficit of Tk 746 crore daily to meet the cash reserve requirements (CRR) of Bangladesh Bank.
Similarly, its daily borrowing from the inter-bank market isTk 3,028 crore, said the bank in the letter to Banking Division Secretary Md Shafiqur Rahman Patwary.
Asked, Patwary confirmed receiving the letter from Sonali Bank.
"The present financial condition of the bank is not suitable to disburse the already approved loans.
Under this scenario, it is not possible to shoulder other banks' liability," said the letter, citing a decision of the Sonali Bank Board to suspend the financing plan for now.
The facility agreement for the financing has yet to be signed in line with the rules of syndicated lending, said Sonali Bank in the letter sent onAugust30.
Sonali, the largest state-owned bank, freezes the financing decision at a time when it is enmeshed in more than Tk 3,500 crore loan scandals. A textile company, Hall-Mark Group, and five
other companies in connivance with bank officials embezzled the funds from the bank.
The bank board decided to suspend the approval after taking part in the $80 million loan syndication for Biman on July 30.
The fund, which Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) raises as leading arranger, will be used to adjust part of a previous lending to Biman made by a group of banks to facilitate the carrier make predelivery payment (PDP) to Boeing for two 777-300ER aircraft.
Boeing has already deliv-
ered these two planes to Biman.
Later, the SCB as lead arranger approached Sonali about taking part in acquiring $80 million of the $114 million PDP loans of Biman.
On April 25, the Sonali Bank Board approved the proposal on condition that the bank would have to take permission from the central bank before acquiring part of the loan.
The state-owned bank said it would inform the SCB about its inability to take part in the financing scheme.