DOS Circular Letter No. 27: Conducting Banking Service from 01 July 2021 to 07 July 2021

50 119 Bangladesh Bank (Central Bank of Bangladesh) Head Office Motijheel, Dhaka-1000 Bangladesh Department of Off-site Supervision DOS Circular Letter No.-27 Date: 16 Asharh 1428 30 June 2021 Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer All Scheduled Banks operating in Bangladesh. Regarding the conduct of banking operations amidst restrictions imposed by the Government to prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).

Dear Sir,

Considering the current situation of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) infection, the Government has announced certain restrictions from 1 July 2021 to 7 July 2021. It has been decided to keep banking operations running on a limited scale during the period of restrictions. In this regard, the following instructions are issued for banks to follow:

1. 1 July 2021 is a Bank Holiday and 2 and 3 July 2021 are weekly holidays, so banks will remain closed. During the period of restrictions, banks will remain closed on Fridays, Saturdays (weekly holidays), and every Sunday. However, instructions under clauses (e) and (f) of Section 3 must be complied with in this regard.

2. Except for holidays and Sundays, the banking schedule for other days of the week will be as follows:

Banking Transaction Schedule Transaction Time for completion of related banking activities All From 10:00 AM to 1:30 PM Until 3:00 PM.

3. During the operation of banking on a limited scale: a) Essential departments of the bank's Head Office should be kept open with limited staff as much as possible; b) The Principal/Main Branch and all Foreign Exchange (FE) branches of the bank should be kept open with a limited number of essential staff; c) In the case of State-owned banks, one branch should be kept open in each District Headquarters and Upazila as per the bank's management discretion; d) In the case of all other banks, one branch should be kept open in each District Headquarters, and up to two branches may be kept open outside the District Headquarters as per the bank's management discretion; e) Card-based transactions and Internet Banking services should be kept running 24/7; and f) ATM booths should be kept running 24/7, including the supply of notes as needed.

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4. The following banking services must be kept running during the period of restrictions: Cash/deposit and withdrawal via cheque for customers' accounts, issuance and acceptance of Demand Drafts/Pay Orders, payment of inward foreign remittances, distribution of allowances/grants under various government social programs, transfer of funds between different open branches of the same bank and between different accounts of the same branch, acceptance of Treasury Challans, provision of other transaction facilities under various payment systems/clearing systems operated by Bangladesh Bank to all customers of the bank with online facilities and to customers of open branches of banks outside such facilities, and urgent foreign transaction-related work.

5. Regarding keeping branches/sub-branches/booths of banks located in sea/land/air port areas (Port and Customs areas) open 24/7, appropriate measures should be taken to ensure compliance with health rules in consultation with the local administration and Port/Customs authorities, in accordance with DOS Circular Letter No.-24 issued on 5 August 2019.

6. Necessary arrangements should be made to conduct customer service activities of branches that will remain closed during the period of restrictions through open branches. Notices should be displayed in visible places of the closed branches to inform customers about customer service availability.

7. In all open branches, banking services must be ensured with a limited number of staff while complying with health rules. During the period of restrictions, banks must make necessary arrangements for the transportation of their staff/employees to and from their respective offices.

8. Bank staff/employees must carry identification cards issued by their respective institutions while traveling.

9. The validity of DOS Circular Letter No.-25 issued on 16 June 2021 is hereby revoked.

These instructions are issued under the powers conferred by Section 45 of the Bank Company Act, 1991.

Yours faithfully, (Md. Anowarul Islam) General Manager Phone: 9530093