Uttara Bank, a listed private commercial bank, has announced a generous dividend—17.5 percent cash and 17.5 percent stock—for its shareholders, at a time when many banks will not be allowed to provide any dividend this year due to the central bank's strict dividend policy.

The bank declared the dividend based on the higher profits logged in 2024.

The board of directors of the listed bank disclosed the dividend today through a notification on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website.

Following the announcement, the lender's stock price rose by 2.39 percent to Tk 25.7 on the DSE.

At the end of 2024, its earnings per share stood at Tk 5.79, compared to Tk 3.84 in the previous year.

Under the new rules of Bangladesh Bank, banks that have taken a deferral facility from the central bank to maintain provisioning requirements will be barred from paying dividends from 2024 onwards.

Additionally, banks with non-performing loans exceeding 10 percent of their total loans will not be able to declare dividends to shareholders from 2025.