Bangladesh’s remittance inflow hit an all-time high of $30.32 billion in FY2024–25, crossing the $30 billion mark for the first time in a single fiscal year, according to the latest data from Bangladesh Bank.

The figure represents a 26.8 per cent increase from $23.91 billion received in the previous fiscal year, with a significant boost seen between March and June—largely driven by Eid-related transfers from expatriates.

In June alone, remittance inflow reached $2.81 billion, rising from $2.53 billion in May, $2.75 billion in April, and $3.29 billion in March.

Monthly remittance inflows remained consistently above $2 billion from August 2024 through June 2025.

Bankers attributed the growth to a reduced rate gap between official channels and the informal hundi market.

Previously, a substantial difference between open market and interbank dollar rates prompted many migrants to use informal channels.

The interbank exchange rate rose to Tk 123 a US dollar, up from Tk 110 in December 2023 and significantly higher than Tk 106 in June 2023 and Tk 93.45 in June 2022.

The steady increase in official rates has made banking channels more attractive to remitters, particularly when combined with the government’s incentive package.

Since January 2022, the government has offered a 2.5 per cent cash incentive on remittances sent through formal channels, up from the previous 2 per cent.

After the political shift in Bangladesh on August 5, 2024, remittance inflow through formal channel surged significantly.

Another crucial contributor has been the tightening of regulatory oversight on money laundering and illegal transactions.

The high remittance inflow has helped the central bank repay significant foreign overdue payments by the end of December 2024.

Despite these repayments, the country’s foreign currency reserve, according to the International Monetary Fund guidelines, increased to near $26.32 billion on Sunday, which was highest after inception of BPM6 in June 2023.

In addition, according to the conventional valuation by the Bangladesh Bank, the foreign exchange reserve increased to $31.31 billion on Sunday from $26.14 billion on June 15.

This improvement in reserve position offers the central bank some breathing space in managing currency volatility and external debt obligations.

The remittance inflow reached $23.9 billion in FY24, up from $21.6 billion in FY23.

Bangladesh’s trade deficit, although still large, also showed slight improvement in July-April.

The gap narrowed to $18.22 billion, compared with $18.7 billion a year earlier.