Dhaka, Nov. 15 -- "Where any interest or part thereof is waived by a scheduled bank or a financial institution in favour of a company registered with the RJSC, such waived amount shall be deemed as income of the company and shall be taxable in an assessment year in which such waiver is made," reads Section 67(8) of the Income Tax Act-2023 (Bangladesh).

Interest is being waived by commercial banks in favour of non-performing corporate borrowers who have faced colossal business losses over the past one decade. These losses stem from factors like Covid-19 pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, steep fall in the value of taka against dollar and inconsistent utility support from the government. The waiver is considered a measure to provide financial r...