Bangladesh seeks USD 4.5 billion IMF loan

Dhaka: Bangladesh is holding talks with the IMF for a USD 4.5 billion loan package to support its economy amid the West Asia conflict, media reports said on Thursday.

A delegation led by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury has sought the loan in six instalments, spanning over three years, starting from December 2026, in a "fruitful discussion" with IMF Deputy Managing Director Nigel Clarke in Bangkok, bdnews24.com news portal reported.

"Discussions have been held with the IMF on a new programme. There will be conditions attached to the loan, and we will have to fulfill them," he was quoted as saying by the news portal.


Bangladesh entered a USD 4.7 billion IMF programme in January 2023 during the Awami League's rule. The interim government later raised it to USD 5.5 billion, and Dhaka received USD 3.8 billion in five tranches. In May, the BNP-led government quit the programme eight months before its scheduled expiry.

Chowdhury on Thursday stated that the conditions under the new programme "will be met", just days after he cancelled the previous IMF programme, saying their "conditions are not acceptable to us".

He also said at that time that Bangladesh needed USD 50 billion a year and would raise funds through the capital market rather than rely on IMF and World Bank loans.

But the reversal of the stance came in view of an intersection of downgraded growth, escalating economic strains, surging import and particularly energy costs, geopolitical uncertainties and visibly gaining IMF flexibility through a "gradual" reform path.

Talking to the media, the minister on Thursday said that the IMF has some observations on certain issues and "we agree with most of those observations".

"Many relate to the banking sector and the tax-to-GDP ratio. It is only natural for them to have observations; we have observations of our own as well," he said.

Officials familiar with the meeting said the loan amount and conditions were expected to be finalised during staff-level negotiations following an IMF staff mission to Bangladesh later this month.