
The dollar price has increased against the taka as demand for the greenback increased amid a rebound in import payments and large-scale purchases by the Bangladesh Bank.
According to the central bank’s reference rate published on Wednesday, the dollar traded at Tk 122.25, up from below Tk 122 on October 20.
This is the first time since September 23 that the rate has crossed the Tk 122 mark.
The reference exchange rate (RR) reflects the weighted average of interbank and client-level transactions involving at least $100,000.
Among major banks, The City Bank sold dollars at Tk 122.8 each and bought at Tk 121.5.
Sonali Bank, Prime Bank, and BRAC Bank quoted a selling rate of Tk 122.6 and a buying rate of Tk 121.6 — higher than Tk 122.2 recorded at the end of September.
Mutual Trust Bank managing director and CEO Syed Mahbubur Rahman told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· that the dollar has increased as banks had to pay for a number of large LCs.
He said that the central bank purchase large volume of dollars from banks which also contributed to the surge.
He also added that banks took oversold position meaning that they have sold more US dollars than they actually hold in their foreign exchange accounts, anticipating they’ll receive them soon.
Since July, Bangladesh Bank has purchased about $2.08 billion from commercial banks under the multiple price auction system, at rates ranging between Tk 121.5 and Tk 121.9 per dollar, BB officials said.
The intervention aimed to prevent excessive appreciation of the taka after the exchange rate briefly dropped to Tk 119.5 in mid-July.
However, the move has tightened dollar liquidity and pushed rates upward, especially as import-related demand began to rise.
Bangladesh Bank data shows that letters of credit (LCs) for imports increased by 8.28 per cent to $11.47 billion in July–August of FY26, compared with $10.67 billion in the same period a year earlier.
On the other hand, some businesses accused banks of raising the exchange rate to profit from the gap between official and market prices.
They argued that the demand does not fully justify the recent appreciation, as overall trade and investment activity remain sluggish.
The dollar has been appreciating steadily against the taka for nearly four years. It rose from Tk 84.81 in June 2021 to Tk 93.45 in June 2022, Tk 106 in June 2023, and has now exceeded Tk 122.
As of October 16, Bangladesh’s gross foreign exchange reserves stood at $32 billion, though the IMF-calculated reserve — which excludes encumbered assets — was $27.33 billion.