Despite returning to profitability, seven mutual funds managed by ICB Asset Management Company Limited (ICB AMCL) will not pay any dividend for the third consecutive year. Although the funds’ profits increased in FY2026, investors will be deprived of dividends because accumulated income remains negative due to losses carried forward from previous years.
At a meeting of the trustee committee held on Sunday, the dividend for all seven funds was declared at zero. As a result, investors in these funds will not receive any cash dividend this year either.
ICB officials said the funds’ earnings weakened in previous years due to volatility in the stock market, with several funds accumulating losses. However, ICB AMCL First Agrani Bank Mutual Fund managed to remain profitable and maintain positive accumulated income in FY2026, allowing it to declare a 4% dividend.
According to officials, accumulated income at the other funds remains negative even after adjusting for previous years’ losses. Therefore, despite a significant improvement in earnings in FY2026, the funds were unable to reach a position where they could legally declare dividends.
They said the country’s stock market experienced volatility in recent years due to various political developments, including the national election, as well as geopolitical tensions. Although the market witnessed a strong recovery toward the end of the fiscal year, a significant portion of the funds’ capital gains remains unrealized. As a result, these gains have not yet generated sufficient cash flow.
An ICB official said, “The funds had negative accumulated income because of previous losses. Even after adjusting the strong performance of the current year, they have not yet developed the capacity to pay dividends.”
Meanwhile, following the declaration of zero dividends by the seven funds, significant selling pressure was observed in their units in the market. According to Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) data, unit prices of these funds fell by approximately 4% to 7% after the dividend announcement.
ICB Asset Management has approved the financial statements of eight of the 10 closed-end mutual funds it manages on a fiscal-year basis. According to ICB data, seven funds were in losses in FY2025, but most of them made a significant turnaround in FY2026. In the previous fiscal year, only one fund had reported a profit.
The overall recovery of the stock market was one of the key reasons behind the improvement in the funds’ earnings. In FY2026, the benchmark DSEX index rose by nearly 19%, reaching 5,762 points. Amid market reforms and improving investor confidence, this represented one of the strongest annual performances of the market in recent years.
During the fiscal year, the DSEX increased by 924 points. At the same time, the blue-chip DS30 index rose by nearly 20%, or 363 points, to 2,178 points. Total market capitalization also increased by Tk 36,421 crore, or 5.49%, to approximately Tk 6.98 lakh crore.
Currently, ICB Asset Management manages a total of 15 mutual funds, including 10 closed-end and five open-end funds. The combined size of the eight approved closed-end funds is approximately Tk 803 crore.
How the Funds Performed
The Tk 50 crore ICB AMCL Second Mutual Fund earned Tk 1.47 per unit in FY2026, compared with a loss of Tk 0.15 per unit in the previous fiscal year.
The Tk 75 crore ICB Employees Provident Mutual Fund One earned Tk 1.12 per unit in FY2026, compared with a loss of Tk 0.23 per unit in FY2025.
Prime Bank 1st ICB AMCL Mutual Fund earned Tk 1.17 per unit. Meanwhile, Phoenix Finance 1st Mutual Fund and ICB AMCL Third NRB Mutual Fund earned Tk 1.64 and Tk 1.40 per unit, respectively.
In addition, IFIL Islamic Mutual Fund-1 earned Tk 0.96 per unit, while ICB AMCL Sonali Bank 1st Mutual Fund earned Tk 1.12 per unit.
The Tk 100 crore ICB AMCL First Agrani Bank Mutual Fund earned Tk 1.35 per unit in FY2026, significantly higher than the Tk 0.36 per unit earned in FY2025. Due to its positive accumulated income, the fund has decided to pay a 4% dividend.