Sri Lanka seeks another loan from Bangladesh

[Black_cats]

Sri Lanka seeks another loan from Bangladesh​

​

March 29, 2022 at 1:13 PM

Sri Lanka has sought another US$ 250 million currency swap from Bangladesh, News First reported today.

The request for the currency swap had been announced by Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen.

Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister is currently in Sri Lanka to attend the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) which got underway in Colombo today.

The request for a US$ 250 million currency swap comes on the back of the US$ 200 million currency swap that was extended by the Bangladesh Bank (BB) to Sri Lanka in 2021.

Sri Lanka received the loan facility from Bangladesh in three tranches. The BB released US$ 50 million as the first tranche under a currency swap deal to support poorly-rated Sri Lanka on August 19, 2021.

The second tranche amounting to US$ 100 million was released on August 30, 2021, and the final installment worth US$ 50 million was released on September 21, 2021. (NewsWire)

Sri Lanka seeks another loan from Bangladesh - Newswire

Sri Lanka has sought another US$ 250 million currency swap from Bangladesh, News First reported today. The request for theContinue Reading

www.newswire.lk

 

[bluesky]

Sri Lanka runs out of diesel, faces longest-ever blackout

The South Asian nation is in the grips of its worst economic downturn sparked by an acute lack of foreign currency to pay for even the most essential imports

www.dhakatribune.com

 

[UKBengali]

BD should look at this request in a very generous manner.

It is in BD's interest to counterbalance Indian influence in Sri Lanka like it is with other smaller S Asian countries like Nepal.

 

[Arulmozhi Varman]

Honestly think the money isn't coming back soon enough. India has already provided 2B in credit and 500m in oil/gas. China has given 2B, BD gave 500m I guess.
Rajapakse brothers are again in front of China requesting another 2B, which China isn't too keen at the moment. And all these amounts have been borrowed just in the last 2 months.

The best way to move forward is to.work with IMF for which they are negotiating for 6B. But Rajapakse brothers are so corrupt, that they are not ready to open up.the accounts, spendings etc to international scrutiny and going to IMF as a prestige issue.

 

[Destranator]

BD should not bat an eye and approve the currency swap immediately. We are getting Sri Lankan rupees in return which can be used to pay for imports from Sri Lanka in the future.

 

[mb444]

BD should not bat an eye and approve the currency swap immediately. We are getting Sri Lankan rupees in return which can be used to pay for imports from Sri Lanka in the future.

We should help srilanka but not our detriment. I would rather give them a loan with small interest to he paid back in dollars once their economy improves.

There is little point holding rupees whose value is in freefall.

 

[UKBengali]

We should help srilanka but not our detriment. I would rather give them a loan with small interest to he paid back in dollars once their economy improves.

There is little point holding rupees whose value is in freefall.

I think another option is potentially barter trade at least for partial repayment

BD gives them the dollars and in return it gets goods it would normally import.

Whichever way, it is in BD interest to not let Sri Lanka become totally dependent on India.

 

[F-6 enthusiast]

BD should not bat an eye and approve the currency swap immediately. We are getting Sri Lankan rupees in return which can be used to pay for imports from Sri Lanka in the future.

does sri-lanka have fighters ?

 

[bluesky]

The two products SL has in surplus are teas and gems. Some of the precious stones in SL are blue sapphire, pink sapphire or ruby, yellow sapphire; alexandrite and cat's-eye chrysoberyl; and almandine and hessonite garnet.

Our women would be happy to wear gems mixed with gold ornament, so it can be imported.

The govt imports precious stones and collects taxes. Our women are happy and our govt coffer is enriched with tax money. BD becomes a la la country with the happiest group of women. Our men would think although not dead, they are already living in the Paradise.

But, BD cannot import teas in big quantities because it almost produces its needs. I think BD already imports a small quantity for blending with the local tea.

Also, SL has requested BD to increase the use of Colombo Port. BD can do so more with Colombo and use Singapore Port in less frequencies. This will relieve SL from its current money crunch quite a little.

However, BD should extend $250 million loan without expecting anything good in exchange. BD should do so without indulging in regional politics or to become a rival to India.

 

[Bilal9]

does sri-lanka have fighters ?

They actually don't need any. Let's not make fun of our SL brothers and sisters. I have quite a few friends and they all are extremely educated and generous to a fault. We should help them out as much as we can.

Sri Lankans are actually well situated in our businesses as corporate folks especially apparel, tea, pharma and financial services. They act as bridges between Western companies and Bangladeshi ones with their better education and corporate skills.

We should prioritize hiring Sri-Lankan corporate employees over other foreign ones.

We should also set up medical tourism and normal tourism in Sri Lanka, given the educated workforce, qualified doctors and nurses there. If we can provide even 10% of the money in Sri Lanka that goes to India from Bangladesh, it will be a huge shot-in-the-arm for Sri Lankan economy.

A true friend is a well-tested all-weather friend. Bangladesh should stand by Sri Lanka in its hour of need.

 

[Bilal9]

The two products SL has in surplus are teas and gems. Some of the precious stones in SL are blue sapphire, pink sapphire or

, yellow sapphire; alexandrite and cat's-eye chrysoberyl; and almandine and hessonite garnet.

Our women would be happy to wear gems mixed with gold ornament, so it can be imported.

Bangladeshis should invest in these gemstone processing outfits in Sri Lanka to help their economy.

blue sapphire

Ruby

alexandrite (comes in lots of other colors as well)

Cat's eye

Almandine

Hessonite Garnet

 

[mb444]

They actually don't need any. Let's not make fun of our SL brothers and sisters. I have quite a few friends and they all are extremely educated and generous to a fault. We should help them out as much as we can.

Sri Lankans are actually well situated in our businesses as corporate folks especially apparel, tea, pharma and financial services. They act as bridges between Western companies and Bangladeshi ones with their better education and corporate skills.

We should prioritize hiring Sri-Lankan corporate employees over other foreign ones.

We should also set up medical tourism and normal tourism in Sri Lanka, given the educated workforce, qualified doctors and nurses there. If we can provide even 10% of the money in Sri Lanka that goes to India from Bangladesh, it will be a huge shot-in-the-arm for Sri Lankan economy.

A true friend is a well-tested all-weather friend. Bangladesh should stand by Sri Lanka in its hour of need.

First let me be clear i am for supporting Srilanka because you can not have stability if your neighbour is unsettled.

But let us also keep things in perspective.... during the Rohingya debacle srilanka took an aggressively anti Bangladeshi position.

Srilanka i do not view as friend. Lets keep our eyes open and use this as opportunity to expand strategic leverage.

 

[Tom-tom]

First let me be clear i am for supporting Srilanka because you can not have stability if your neighbour is unsettled.

But let us also keep things in perspective.... during the Rohingya debacle srilanka took an aggressively anti Bangladeshi position.

Srilanka i do not view as friend. Lets keep our eyes open and use this as opportunity to expand strategic leverage.

In this regard Sri Lanka will always be India lacky over bdesh. They just starting to see bdesh as a cash cow

 

[bluesky]

We should also set up medical tourism and normal tourism in Sri Lanka, given the educated workforce, qualified doctors and nurses there. If we can provide even 10% of the money in Sri Lanka that goes to India from Bangladesh, it will be a huge shot-in-the-arm for Sri Lankan economy.

Yes, the GoB should undertake efforts to make SL as the destination of tourism. It was always a tourist country but everything changed because of Covid-19 for the last few years.

International tourists stopped coming and SL woes started to become more and more acute. The GoB should encourage patients and tourists to visit SL. SL common people and doctors all are well-versed in English.

Sigiriya or the mount of remembrance is a World Heritage Site and one of the most stunning places to see in Sri Lanka.

Trincomalee, among many similar Sri Lanka tourist spots, is blessed with a beautiful beach.

Polonnaruwa Sacred City​

This city was once the ancient kingdom of Sri Lanka and walking into this still gives a feeling of the Golden Age. Inside one of the most popular Sri Lanka tourist spots, there are still ruins of palaces, shrines and stupas which makes it one of the top tourist attractions in Sri Lanka.

 

[mb444]

In this regard Sri Lanka will always be India lacky over bdesh. They just starting to see bdesh as a cash cow

I am fine with that as long as we exact benefit in return. Our relationship should be transactional as with any non muslim country.