Inward remittance rises 11% to $1.12 billion in July

Inward remittance rose about 11 percent year-on-year to $1.12 billion in July, according to the latest data from Bangladesh Bank.

Remittance is expected to rebound in August from its downturn as migrant workers will send more funds back home ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha, Subhankar Saha, spokesman for the central bank, told bdnews24.com. 

In its latest monetary policy statement, the central bank has expressed concern over dwindling remittance. It fell 14.5 percent in the year that ended Jun 30.

It is suffering a downturn not just because of weakened demand for migrant workers abroad, but because workers find it hard to access legitimate channels for sending money home, according to the statement. 

High costs of compliance imposed by stricter rules against money laundering and terror finance discourage the workers from transferring funds through formal channels. 

The government and the central bank are trying to widen legitimate channels for migrant workers abroad, Bangladesh Bank said.