Bangladesh, Oct. 11 -- Bangladesh Bank Governor Md Mostaqur Rahman yesterday said Bangladesh will need to allocate Tk60,000 crore annually from the national budget over the next five to eight years to address losses in the banking sector from massive "financial looting and structural damage".

"When I took over as governor, one-third of the money had already been stolen," he said, referring to total loans in the banking sector, at a Bangla QR promotional event organised by ONE Bank at United International University (UIU) on the Saturday.

Highlighting the opportunity cost of the financial drain, the governor said the money could have supported 2 crore families or financed two mega infrastructure projects similar to the Padma Bridge.

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