BB Buys $83m More in Ongoing Dollar Auction Drive

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The Bangladesh Bank today purchased an additional $83 million from banks through a dollar auction, continuing its efforts to stabilise the exchange rate and support remittance and export growth.

According to central bank data, the purchase was made at rates between Tk121.47 and Tk121.50. With this transaction, the bank has bought a total of $622 million so far in FY26.

On 7 August, it acquired $45 million at Tk121.35–Tk121.50, following a $10 million purchase on 23 July at Tk121.95—a drop of at least 45 basis points from earlier rates.

The intervention began on 13 July with a historic first-ever dollar auction, in which $171 million was bought at Tk121.50. Another $313 million followed on 15 July at the same rate. Officials say the strategy aims to set a signal rate for the market and curb sharp dollar depreciation.

A senior member of the central bank’s auction committee said banks had offered nearly $100 million in the latest auction, but only a portion was purchased to suit market conditions. “We are taking necessary steps to keep the exchange rate stable to support exporters and remitters,” the official noted.

A deputy managing director of a private bank observed that the banking sector is seeing higher-than-needed dollar inflows. Monthly remittances average $2.5 billion, while exports bring in about $4 billion, totalling $6.5 billion. With monthly imports now at $4–4.5 billion, the excess supply is pushing the dollar rate down, prompting the central bank’s intervention to prevent a steep fall.