Khurshid Alam, Habibur Rahman appointed Bangladesh Bank deputy governors

Bangladesh Bank's executive director Md Khurshid Alam and chief economist Dr Habibur Rahman have been appointed as deputy governors of the central bank.

They have been appointed on contractual basis for the next three years.

The Financial Institutions Division under the Ministry of Finance issued two circulars in this regard on Wednesday (February 28, 2024).

The new deputy governors have been appointed on condition of cancellation of voluntary retirement from their current posts.

With the latest recruitments, there are now four deputy governors at the Bangladesh Bank.

Md Khurshid Alam had been serving as the executive director (Grade-1) of the Bangladesh Bank.

He began his tenure with Bangladesh Bank in 1988 and has since served in various departments, including Banking Regulation and Policy, Banking Inspection, SME & Special Programs, Green Banking & CSR, and Debt Management.

His extensive experience includes postings in Bangladesh Bank's Chattogram, Sylhet, and Rangpur offices.

Khurshid Alam played a pivotal role in establishing the Sustainable Finance Department within Bangladesh Bank and has been instrumental in formulating policies related to Green Banking, Sustainable Financing, CSR for the Banking Sector, Financial Inclusion & Literacy, and environmental Financial Issues.

He holds a degree in Management from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He earned his MBA degee from Stamford University Bangladesh. He further enhanced his skills by completing an Advanced Training Course on Econometric Analysis from the Bureau of Economic Research, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Md Habibur Rahman is the chief economist of the central bank.

Previously, Dr Habibur Rahman worked in the research department, monetary management, and technical unit of Bangladesh Bank. He also worked as a senior research economist in the policy analysis unit of Bangladesh Bank under the World Bank's capacity building project.

Dr Habibur, who has a PhD in practical economics, joined Bangladesh Bank's research department in 1990 as an assistant director.

The contract with deputy governor AKM Sajedur Rahman Khan ended on February 2, while deputy governor Abu Farah Md Nasser's contract expired on February 23.

Abu Farah Md Nasser will assume the role of the bank's policy advisor for the upcoming year.

The Bangladesh Bank had three deputy governor posts, which were increased to four in 2019.

The fourth post was added on the condition that one deputy governor would be appointed from a commercial bank.

In October 2019, the government issued a circular for appointing a deputy governor. Later in February this year, it advertised again for the two deputy governor posts.

The circular included one more option, allowing applicants from commercial banks with working experience of 25 years.