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FEPD Circular No. 14/2025 amends paragraph 26 of Chapter 7 of GFET-2018, the Bangladesh Bank rulebook governing all foreign-exchange transactions executed by Authorised Dealer (AD) banks. The operative change liberalises two linked procedures:
Import-LC discrepancy settlement: ADs may now settle import bills containing documentary discrepancies — documents that do not fully comply with the original LC terms — against a written indemnity-and-waiver letter issued by the importer, without seeking prior Bangladesh Bank approval. Eligibility conditions: (i) the discrepancies must not contravene UCP-600 (the international documentary-credit rules administered by the ICC); (ii) the discrepancies must not constitute "material changes" as defined in GFET-2018 paragraph 31(c); (iii) the importer formally accepts the discrepant documents in writing. ADs retain full due-diligence, KYC, and AML obligations and must report settled discrepant transactions to FEPD post-settlement.
Back-to-back LC extension: The same liberalised treatment applies to back-to-back import LCs issued under the export-oriented bonded-warehouse and EPZ regime, which underpins Bangladesh's garment (RMG), textile, and export-processing sectors. This allows RMG manufacturers to settle raw-material import bills (fabric, accessories, trimmings) sourced under back-to-back LCs without the prior-approval bottleneck, reducing settlement delays during Bangladesh's ongoing USD-liquidity stress period.
The circular also instructs ADs to conduct proper due diligence before issuing shipping guarantees, airway releases, or delivery orders against copy documents received directly by importers, to prevent discrepancy manufacturing.
government (August 2024–) in the IPTM register; companion to the broader Bangladesh trade-policy framework (2024-02-25-bangladesh-export-policy-2024-2027) and the later 2026-01-29-bangladesh-import-policy-order-2025-2028 which extended the same trade-facilitation direction at the three-year policy-order level.
Bangladesh imports approximately USD 60–70 billion annually (FY2024), of which roughly USD 30 billion flows through formal LC channels. The discrepancy-waiver change reduces friction and settlement delays across this corridor, which has been under strain from FX-reserve depletion (gross reserves below USD 25 billion through 2025) and IMF-EFF programme conditionality (4th and 5th reviews 2024–2025 emphasised import-payment normalisation).
(~USD 47 billion FY2024). The back-to-back LC extension is the operationally significant part for the EPZ/bonded-warehouse industrial base, reducing settlement friction in raw-material supply chains and improving working-capital flow for export-cycle financing.
circulars and Vietnam SBV import-payment regulations; completes the South Asia central-bank trade-finance-administration coverage map.
the USD-reserve position stabilises post-IMF-EFF programme (6th review expected H2 2026).
against copy documents — watch for enforcement circulars.