Staff Correspondent
Defaulted loans of non-bank financial institutions in Bangladesh amounted to Tk 29,408 crore, representing 37.11 per cent of total loans as of September 2025.
The figure was an increase of Tk 1,867 crore from the previous quarter of May-June 2025, according to Bangladesh Bank data.
Financial experts said that the default loans of NBFIs surged to the current level due mainly to past irregularities, poor governance and weakened supervision.
The total defaulted loan in the NBFI sector was Tk 24,711 crore in June 2024.
The total outstanding loan amount of the NBFIs increased to Tk 79,251 crore in September 2025 from Tk 77,093 crore in June 2025.
At the end of December 2024, the total loan portfolio of NBFIs was Tk 75,450 crore, of which Tk 25,089 crore or 33.25 per cent was classified as non-performing.
The Bangladesh Bank has moved to shut down nine NBFIs after they failed to return depositors’ money, collapsed under massive non-performing loans and suffered crippling capital shortfalls.
Currently, there are 35 NBFIs operating in the country, according to a BB report.
But many of them have been in deep trouble for years, forcing regulators to finally take drastic measures.
Bangladesh Bank data showed that 20 out of 35 NBFIs had default loan ratios exceeding 50 per cent.
In May 2025, the central bank issued show-cause notices to 20 NBFIs that were failing to operate properly, asking why their licences should not be revoked on grounds of high non-performing loans, capital shortfalls, and inability to return depositors’ money.
Eleven of these institutions submitted plans to turn around, but nine failed to provide satisfactory responses.
The Bangladesh Bank has since decided to close them down and initiate liquidation.
The firms that would be shut are FAS Finance and Investment, Bangladesh Industrial Finance Company, Peoples Leasing and Financial Services, International Leasing and Financial Services, Aviva Finance, Premier Leasing and Finance, Fareast Finance and Investment, GSP Finance Company and Prime Finance and Investment.
For years, depositors have suffered as their money remained stuck in these institutions.
Many retirees, small traders and families who had placed their life savings with these firms staged repeated protests in front of company offices demanding their money back.
By the end of 2024, the NBFI sector’s combined losses stood at Tk 3,555 crore, almost double of the Tk 1,803 crore reported in 2023.
Bangladesh Bank’s Financial Stability Report 2024 painted a bleak picture, showing that only nine of the 35 NBFIs could be considered sound, while 21 were identified as weak.
Source: https://www.newagebd.net/post/banking/288566/37pc-loans-of-nbfis-turn-toxic
