The number of bank accounts holding deposits exceeding Tk聽1 crore increased to 1,18,784 as of June, according to Bangladesh Bank data.
The central bank data showed the number of such bank accounts increased by 2,894 in the June-end quarter compared with that of 1,15,890 in the March-end quarter.
The number was 1,16,908 at the end of December and 1,13,554 in June 2023.
However, despite the growth in high-value accounts, the majority of bank accounts in Bangladesh held relatively small amounts.
Out of the total 15.35 crore bank accounts nationwide, 11.31 crore accounts hold less than Tk聽5,000 each, according to the central bank data.
The accounts holding more than Tk 1 crore represent only 0.075 per cent of the total bank accounts, yet they account for about 42 per cent of aggregate deposits.
The total deposits in the banking sector stood at Tk 17.62 lakh crore at the end of June.聽 It included Tk聽7.73 lakh crore in accounts holding more than Tk聽1 crore.
Among the accounts with over Tk聽1 crore deposits, 1,818 accounts held deposits over Tk聽50 crore each, collectively holding more than Tk聽2.69 lakh crore.
The volume of money in accounts holding Tk聽1 crore each was Tk聽7.3 lakh crore at the end of June 2023, and Tk聽6.77 lakh crore at the end of December 2022.
This growth in high-value accounts has been consistent over the past five years, with the number of accounts each holding over Tk 1 crore increasing from 75,563 in December 2018 to 1,01,976 by the end of December 2021.
Bankers said that the country鈥檚 economic challenges, including soaring inflation, mounting external debts, a dollar crisis, falling foreign reserves, and energy shortages, have limited investment opportunities for affluent individuals, leading to a rise in deposits in their bank accounts.
Furthermore, the government鈥檚 high borrowing from the central bank, which involves printing money, has also increased the money flow in the financial market, they said.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, the rate of inflation in Bangladesh reached 10.49 per cent in August, and overall inflation was over 9 per cent during the past 12 consecutive months, driven by escalating prices of essential commodities.
Experts said that the number of accounts holding more than Tk 1 crore had been increasing due to persistently high inflation as some businesspeople made money out of crisis.
They also said that a large number of accounts held minimal amounts of money, while a few accounts held significant sums that indicated a concentration of assets to a select few individuals and growing inequality.
