The Bangladesh Association of Publicly Listed Companies (BAPLC) has urged Bangladesh Bank to revise the existing Credit Information Bureau (CIB) policy, arguing that financially sound listed companies should not be penalised because of the loan default status of their directors or nominating institutions.

The demand was raised during a meeting between a BAPLC delegation, led by its President Riyad Mahmud, and Bangladesh Bank Governor Mostakur Rahman at the central bank’s headquarters on Tuesday.

During the meeting, the association highlighted several regulatory challenges facing leading corporate entities, particularly complications arising from the current CIB reporting system.

Under the existing framework, if a nominating institution, such as a parent company or financial institution, is classified as a loan defaulter, companies where its nominated directors serve on the board often face difficulties in obtaining bank financing and conducting business, even if those companies are financially healthy and compliant with regulations.

BAPLC leaders said this concept of “proxy default” creates unreasonable obstacles for businesses. They called for companies’ creditworthiness to be assessed based solely on their own financial performance and operational capacity rather than the financial problems of associated individuals or entities.

The association also noted that a negative CIB report against an entrepreneur, director or guarantor within a business group effectively blocks credit facilities for other companies in the same group, harming financially sound and compliant firms.

It urged the central bank to move away from a “one-size-fits-all” approach and introduce a more balanced, company-specific assessment system.

Apart from the CIB issue, the delegation called for expanding the scope of the government’s Factory Revival Fund to include restructured and operational factories facing financial difficulties, arguing that such support would help sustain production, protect thousands of jobs and prevent potentially viable industries from shutting down.

BAPLC leaders also stressed the need for Bangladesh’s economy to rely more on the capital market for long-term financing to reduce risks from rising non-performing loans in the banking sector. They said greater use of equity and bond-based financing would deepen the capital market, ease pressure on banks and support sustainable growth in the corporate sector and the broader financial system.