Hidden charges foil single digit loan policy

Abu Sazzad: The banking clients are not gaining the fruitful outcome for implementing the rhetoric single digit credit policy due to the application of higher service and multifarious hidden charges on any banking product, increasing cost of doing business as well as hindering the growth of the service and industrial sector.
Although the interest rate on bank loans has come down to single digit, the service charge has doubled from bank to bank. The central bank already implemented the single digit loan system from April last, but borrowers are now facing an unbearable pain to count at least 44 types of service charges.
Due to higher service and hidden charges, the general customers are forcing to pay 10 to18 percent interests against banking loan. Apart from this, the charging of hidden charges has created intolerable disappointment in the state of mind of every banking service receiver because they are not interested to pay such additional charges on banking services.
On the other hand, the export and import oriented stakeholders are counting some 29 types of service and hidden charges.
Many banking clients expressed their dissatisfaction to the Daily Industry through disclosing that borrowers are not gaining the benefits of single digit interest rates because they are still paying double digit lending rate.
Banking sources said, Bangladesh Bank facilitated the banks through introducing various policy supports for ensuring single digit banking loan facilities, but ‘Subhankar’s hoax’ is prevailing in the name of implementing single digit interest rate.
Many clients claimed that banks are deceiving with their clients for gaining vested interest. In addition to the prescribed schedule of charges, the additional and hidden charges taking policy are demoralizing the banking service receivers to keep trust on the traditional banking system.
The Prime Minister Skeikh Hasina asked to bring down the interest rate on loans to single digit and the bank owners announced to provide single digit the interest rate which is appreciable, said Mirza Walid Hossain, President of Jubo Economist Forum.
“The bank owners are availing various policy supports against ensuring single digit loan policy, but they did not talk about various benefits. The owners are taking credit for implementing the demand of the stakeholders to ensure single digit bank loan, but they are not concern on additional charges or they are deliberately applying vested tactic to attain higher profit”, he added.
Every bank has schedule of charges against banking services, but the charging of additional and hidden charges are completely unethical, he also mentioned.
Actually, high interest rate on loans is creating severe difficulties on investment and production in the country. Already, the industrial and service sectors are facing profound uncertainty to revamp the normal business activities for the adverse impact of the virus pandemic; he said adding that such irrational additional banking charges would help increasing the cost of doing business. He recommended the central bank to look after the matter for facilitating the stakeholders of entire sectors.
Experts have expressed their deep concern for charging unethical service and hidden charges, hindering the growth of the industrial and service sector as well as creating obstacle to generate employment in the country. Actually, the single digit loan application is on paper rather than reality, they claimed adding that single digit loan policy lagged behind ensuring fruitful outcome.