The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has greenlit a significant financial injection of $1.15 billion to Bangladesh as part of its ongoing multi-billion-dollar loan programme.
Following a 15-day mission led by Chris Papageorgiou, an economist at the IMF, the organisation reached a staff-level agreement with Bangladesh regarding necessary policies for the completion of the second review under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF), Extended Fund Facility (EFF), and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangements.
Upon approval by the IMF Executive Board, Bangladesh is set to receive approximately $932 million under the ECF/EFF and around $220 million under the RSF. These funds will bolster Bangladesh’s efforts in navigating economic challenges and fostering sustainable growth, the global lender said in a press release on Wednesday.

The agreement underscores Bangladesh’s commitment to implementing critical structural reforms, including the adoption of a formula-based fuel price adjustment mechanism and the realignment of the exchange rate. These reforms aim to address persistently high inflation and declining foreign exchange reserves amid global financial tightening and elevated commodity prices.
The IMF mission also highlighted the importance of fiscal consolidation, revenue generation, and banking sector stability in sustaining economic resilience. Furthermore, efforts to mitigate climate risks and promote green infrastructure investment were emphasised to enhance long-term sustainability.

The disbursement of the third instalment underscores the IMF’s confidence in Bangladesh’s reform agenda and its commitment to achieving upper middle-income status by 2031. The collaboration between Bangladesh and the IMF reflects a shared commitment to fostering economic stability and inclusive growth.
“The authorities have made significant progress on structural reforms under the IMF-supported programme, including the implementation of a formula-based fuel price adjustment mechanism for petroleum products. Nonetheless, larger-than-expected spillovers from the tightening of global financial conditions, and still elevated international commodity and food prices, coupled with domestic vulnerabilities, have led to persistently high inflation and declining foreign exchange reserves. This has exacerbated pressures on the economy and heightened the complexity of macroeconomic challenges, said Papageorgiou in a statement.
The IMF team expressed gratitude to Bangladesh and its stakeholders for their cooperation and constructive discussions during the mission. Meetings were held with key officials, including State Minister of Finance Waseqa Ayesha Khan and Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder, as well as representatives from the private sector, think tanks, and development partners.
Chris Papageorgiou, when asked that the IMF does not talk about money laundering but advises the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to reduce tax exemptions, said, “An important policy of the IMF is to control money laundering. Our target is to support various programmes that raise taxes. We have programmes with the NBR. We are working with the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit on money laundering. In our press releases, we have talked about establishing good governance, which contains a solution to the problem of money laundering.”
Chris Papageorgiou also said, “A big part of our programme is social security. So, we are careful about the impact of our policies on poorer groups. Matters remain under discussion with the NBR.”
Despite high interest rates, inflation remains high in many countries, yet Bangladesh has maintained stable inflation despite increases in interest rates. New data suggests a downward trend in inflation, with projections indicating a potential decrease to 7% next year in Bangladesh, he added.
In a question about bank mergers, Chris Papageorgiou said, “I think the initiative of bank recapitalisation is sometimes needed because there are 61 banks in Bangladesh. Some of them are very strong while some are not.”
State Minister for Finance Waseqa Ayesha Khan held a meeting with the IMF delegation visiting Dhaka at the secretariat on Wednesday afternoon.
The state minister then told reporters that there is no concern about the third tranche of the IMF. The monetary authority advises on reining in inflation, raising revenue, and interest rates. The government will start working in this year following the suggestions to deal with climate and disaster.
On the question of whether the discussion of increasing the tax rate or scope will increase the suffering of the people, the finance minister said that Bangladesh will not take any step that causes suffering to the people while fulfilling the conditions.