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The government is finally bringing the Grameen Bank under direct control of the central bank, to give the authorities more powers over the microcredit organisation.

The decision is in line with the proposals of the government-sponsored Grameen Bank Commission, which recommended bringing the bank under the regulatory control of either the Bangladesh Bank or the Microcredit Regulatory Authority to better monitor its activities.

“It [Grameen Bank] will come under the jurisdiction of the Bangladesh Bank,” Finance Minister AMA Muhith said yesterday.

The minister said the central bank would see how it could regulate the bank under the Banking Companies Act.

The microcredit bank is being run by Grameen Bank Ordinance 1983 since its inception three decades ago and it does not directly fall under the jurisdiction of the Banking Companies Act.