Industrialists and entrepreneurs have demonstrated to protest the increase in interest rate by banks in Kathmandu on Friday.

They held a symbolic protest demonstration putting forth various demands including provision for a fixed interest rate, lowering the premium increased due to base rate, and decreasing the service-charge taking by banks and financial institutions.

Saying investment has increased due to different reasons including rise in interest rate, they demonstrated at Maitighar Mandala to draw attention of bodies concerned, said Vice-President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Dinesh Shrestha.

Shrestha shared “Entrepreneurs and industrialists facing problems joined the protest programme spontaneously. We hoped that the attention of the bodies concerned will be drawn towards our demand.”

The symbolic protest was joined by FNCCI provincial and district chapters and thematic committees, according to Shrestha, they planned to shut the district-based industries and enterprises from Sunday as the continuity of the protest.

The participants displayed placards giving messages such as “we need banking services, but increasing interest rate is becoming unaffordable; we face challenges to sustain business due to a high interest rate; the sustainability of industry, trade is a must to support nation’s economy”.

Last week, the FNCCI delegation submitted a memorandum to the Nepal Rastra Bank, seeking its intervention to resolve issues in the finance sector.

They demand the central bank’s role for the management of liquidity issue, for finance stability of interest rate, price stability and the management of external areas.

Besides, they want the central bank not to implement the amendments in the Current Capital Loan Guidance, to ensure extra time for the payment of loan and interest, undertake a detailed study about the amendment to credit-deposit ratio, and take efforts to increase the capital expenditure and so on.