The banks were crowded all day long yesterday with people withdrawing cash to buy sacrificial animals. Businessmen also rushed to the banks to receive the loans in cash for purchasing hides and skins.

The banks had to make payment against a huge number of cheques as many government and private organisations disbursed Eid bonus and advance salaries to their officials and employees at the last moment.

The call money market transactions resumed yesterday morning with 14 to 15 percent interest rate and by noon it increased to 43 percent as the banks needed cash to meet the clients' huge requirement.

Most of the day's deals were settled at a rate ranging between 40 and 50 percent. At the fag end of the day, the rate jumped to 60 percent, a five-year high, for one deal, bankers and money managers said.

Private commercial banks, foreign banks and financial institutions were the day's major borrowers.

Usually call money market is dominated by the nationalised commercial banks (NCBs) who lend Tk 400-500 crore a day. But yesterday, they were able to lend about Tk 45 crore only due to high volume of lending to hide traders, bank sources said.

Moreover, the private banks could not borrow money through repurchase agreement (Repo) from the Bangladesh Bank as yesterday was the Treasury Bill auction day and Repo auction did not take place.

On the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha, the NCBs approved Tk 1.97 billion loans to the hide traders and disbursement of the money began on Thursday. Private banks are also providing more than Tk one billion.