Dhaka, May 19 -- Formal credit growth for private sector plummeted to a historical low of 4.72 per cent as per latest data available up to March, indicating holdback in economic pickup for multiple adversities.

Such ebb tide in investment credits is attributed to banks becoming more cautious amid higher non-performing loan (NPL) regime and private borrowers losing their credit appetite due to multiple anti-business factors, including energy crisis, higher lending costs, exchange-rate shocks, and existing taxation policy which is deemed not investment-friendly.

Data from Bangladesh Bank (BB) on private-sector credit growth, available since 2003, show that the growth has never dropped this low, even during previous financial shocks.

Acco...