Dhaka, Jan. 11 -- Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur has directed commercial banks to reduce their non-performing loan (NPL) ratio to 25 percent by March, using a combination of restructuring, rescheduling, write-offs, and intensified recovery efforts.

The directive came during a meeting on Sunday with top executives of commercial banks, an official present at the session told bdnews24.com on Sunday.

According to the latest data, the banking sector's NPL ratio stood at around 36 percent in September last year. Total non-performing loans at that time were Tk 6.44 trillion against a total loan portfolio of Tk 18.03 trillion.

At the bankers' meeting, Ahsan urged banks to offer rescheduling to borrowers facing business losses under si...