While currencies in several Asian countries have faced significant depreciation against the US dollar, the Bangladeshi taka has been an exception. Between June 2025 and June 2026, the South Korean won lost around 11 percent of its value. During the same period, the Indian and Sri Lankan rupees depreciated by around 10 percent each, and the Indonesian rupiah lost around 9 percent.
In contrast, the Malaysian ringgit, Chinese yuan, Pakistani rupee and Bangladeshi taka strengthened against the dollar during the period. The ringgit and yuan gained around 4 percent each, the Pakistani rupee 2 percent and the taka around 0.06 percent.
After reviewing one-year exchange-rate movements of currencies in 11 developed and developing Asian countries, including Bangladesh, Bangladesh Bank published the findings in a report titled “Exchange Rate and Foreign Exchange Market Dynamics”. The data were sourced from the central banks of the respective countries, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Financial Statistics (IFS).
In Bangladesh, the average dollar exchange rate in the interbank foreign exchange market remained largely stable during the period. On June 1, 2025, the average exchange rate was BDT 122.96 per dollar, but it had fallen to BDT 122.75 a year later, on June 1, 2026. This means the taka did not depreciate against the dollar over the year; rather, it strengthened by around 21 paisa.
During the same period, the currencies of South Korea, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and Cambodia weakened against the dollar. The exchange rate of the Bangladeshi taka consequently remained relatively stable compared with the overall trend in the regional currency market.
Those concerned say the taka depreciated by more than 45 percent over the three years following 2022. The economy could not absorb such a major shock within such a short period. Consequently, inflation rose into double digits. Although it has eased somewhat since then, it has yet to come under control. Bangladesh also failed to fully capitalise on the benefits of exchange-rate stability because of power and energy shortages.
Bangladesh Bank, however, considers maintaining exchange-rate stability despite higher global fuel and gas prices, including amid wars in the Middle East, a major achievement. Arif Hossain Khan, spokesperson for the central bank, told Bonik Barta: “Over the past year, the currencies of many Asian countries, including India, have depreciated. But that has not happened in Bangladesh. The central bank’s timely decisions have played a major role in this regard. In the last fiscal year, we didn’t sell even $1 from the central bank. We instead bought around $6 billion from the market. During this period, while the exchange rate remained stable, our foreign exchange reserves also strengthened.”
He said remittances sent by expatriate Bangladeshis have played a major role in maintaining exchange-rate stability. “Expatriate Bangladeshis sent a record $35.5 billion home in the last fiscal year. Even more remittances are coming in the current fiscal year. We’ve examined the market and found that there’s currently no pressure on the dollar exchange rate. We hope the exchange rate will remain stable in the coming days as well,” he said.
Data from the Reserve Bank of India meanwhile show that the Indian rupee depreciated by around 10 percent against the dollar between June 2025 and June this year. Over the past year, the rupee’s lowest exchange rate against the dollar was 87.60 rupees. Its value fell to as low as 97 rupees amid the continued depreciation. But the dollar was trading at around 96 rupees in India yesterday.
Indian sources say demand for dollars in the country’s market is higher than supply. The rupee has consequently been losing value against the dollar. 1Foreign investors have been withdrawing capital from the Indian stock market amid global volatility and geopolitical tensions. Rising crude oil prices in the international market have also forced India to spend more dollars on oil imports. Despite the rupee losing around 10 percent of its value against the dollar, inflation in India remains largely under control. In August this year, the latest available figure, the country’s inflation rate stood at 4.82 percent.
Like the Indian rupee, the Sri Lankan rupee also faced depreciation of around 10 percent over the year from June last year to June this year. Earlier, however, the rupee suffered a record fall within three months of March 2022. In March that year, the exchange rate was around 200 rupees to the dollar, while the exchange rate had crossed 350 rupees per dollar by May. At the time, Sri Lanka was facing an economic and political crisis and even declared itself bankrupt. The South Asian island nation, however, recovered quickly afterwards. Despite the recent depreciation, the dollar is now trading below 330 Sri Lankan rupees.
Among Asian countries, Indonesia’s currency also depreciated by around 9 percent against the dollar over the year, while Vietnam’s currency lost around 1 percent of its value. The depreciation of the Singapore dollar and Cambodian riel was comparatively small.
Economist Dr Zahid Hussain believes remittances have played the biggest role in keeping the exchange rate stable in Bangladesh. The former lead economist of the World Bank’s Dhaka office told Bonik Barta: “The strengthening or depreciation of local currencies in different Asian countries is linked to both their domestic conditions and the global situation. Globally, the dollar exchange rate has been on an upward trend over the past year. The exchange rate of the dollar has risen worldwide because of the Middle East war and higher interest rates in the United States. But remittances sent by expatriate Bangladeshis have played a major role in keeping the exchange rate stable in Bangladesh. We’re receiving $3 billion in remittances every month. This is big news for our economy.”
He, however, said that despite the current comfort over the exchange rate, Bangladesh faces major challenges ahead. “Bangladesh has to spend more on imports because of higher fuel prices. This has widened our trade deficit. The private sector has remained stagnant for a long time. The energy crisis has deepened this stagnation. Once the crisis is overcome and the private sector regains momentum, import demand will increase significantly. The big question is how stable the dollar exchange rate can be kept then. The central bank must remain vigilant and prepared for any situation,” he said.
Amid record remittance inflows, stronger foreign exchange reserves and reduced political uncertainty, international credit rating agency Moody’s Ratings recently revised Bangladesh’s sovereign rating outlook from “negative” to “stable”. But the globally influential agency kept Bangladesh’s sovereign credit rating unchanged at “B2”.
Bangladesh Bank said the revision of the sovereign rating outlook to stable by Moody’s would increase investor interest in Bangladesh. Higher foreign investment, in turn, would help keep the exchange rate stable.