School banking is gradually getting huge responses from the students across the country as deposits with the banking accounts increased to around Tk 1,546 crore at the end of March 2019. The central bank’s latest quarterly report on financial inclusion shows that a total of Tk 1,546.14 crore was deposited with 19,54,231 school banking accounts at 55 scheduled banks on March 31 this year, reports BSS.
According to the report, the school banking service is more popular in the cities than in the rural areas as 12,37,458 school banking accounts were opened in the cities against 7,16,773 accounts in the rural areas. The banking is also more popular among the male students than the female as 11,44,775 school banking accounts were opened by male students against 8,09,456 by female.
“Bangladesh Bank launched the programme in November 2010 for school students to help them save up for the future, learn financial literacy at an early age and build the habit of saving,” a BB official told the news agency. Dutch-Bangla Bank, Islami Bank Bangladesh, Eastern Bank, United Commercial Bank and Dhaka Bank are the five banks that pulled most of the deposits from the students.
Islami Bank opened 3,70,991 accounts, which is 18,98 percent of the total accounts, while Dutch-Bangla Bank ranked first by collecting deposits of Tk 455.32 crore with school banking accounts. “As per an instruction of the central bank, Islami Bank introduced school banking so that the future generation can gain knowledge on the financial system,” said Islami Bank Deputy Managing Director Abu Reza Mohd Yeahia.
