The Interview Muhammad Yunus: We dream of creating a new Bangladesh
Rajini Vaidyanathan, BBC News presenter and correspondent, speaks to Muhammad Yunus, interim leader of Bangladesh.
The 84-year-old is perhaps one of the world's best-known Bangladeshis. Described as the banker to the world's poor, he gained international recognition as a Nobel prize-winning economist, who founded the Grameen microfinance bank, which delivered small loans to economically deprived people.
It was a model applauded by many and is one which now operates across more than 100 countries worldwide.
But it's also a model which was criticised by his political rival - Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who accused Mr Yunus of sucking blood from the poor. Her government made a series of allegations against him, including embezzlement, all of which he denies.
And it was the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina's government last August that saw Muhammad Yunus thrust into the political spotlight.
Student-led protests saw thousands take to the streets in an uprising against her Awami league government, which was accused of election rigging, human rights abuses and jailing critics.
When Ms Hasina fled to neighbouring India, student leaders picked Muhammad Yunus to unite a divided nation. As well as promising to stamp out corruption, he's also faced the challenges of managing a refugee crisis on his doorstep and navigating cuts to foreign aid.
So, after nearly a year in the job, how is he faring?
The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presenter: Rajini Vaidyanathan
Producer: Ben Cooper
Editor: Nick Holland
Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@bbc.co.uk and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media.
(Image: Muhammad Yunus. Credit: Reuters/Yves Herman)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
The Interview Muhammad Yunus: We dream of creating a new Bangladesh
Rajini Vaidyanathan, BBC News presenter and correspondent, speaks to Muhammad Yunus, interim leader of Bangladesh. The 84-year-old is perhaps one of the world's best-known Bangladeshis. Described as the banker to the world's poor, he gained international recognition as a Nobel prize-winning economist, who founded the Grameen microfinance bank, which delivered small loans to economically deprived people. It was a model applauded by many and is one which now operates across more than 100 countries worldwide. But it's also a model which was criticised by his political rival - Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who accused Mr Yunus of sucking blood from the poor. Her government made a series of allegations against him, including embezzlement, all of which he denies. And it was the overthrow of Sheikh Hasina's government last August that saw Muhammad Yunus thrust into the political spotlight. Student-led protests saw thousands take to the streets in an uprising against her Awami league government, which was accused of election rigging, human rights abuses and jailing critics. When Ms Hasina fled to neighbouring India, student leaders picked Muhammad Yunus to unite a divided nation. As well as promising to stamp out corruption, he's also faced the challenges of managing a refugee crisis on his doorstep and navigating cuts to foreign aid. So, after nearly a year in the job, how is he faring? The Interview brings you conversations with people shaping our world, from all over the world. The best interviews from the BBC. You can listen on the BBC World Service, Mondays and Wednesdays at 0700 GMT. Or you can listen to The Interview as a podcast, out twice a week on BBC Sounds, Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Presenter: Rajini Vaidyanathan Producer: Ben Cooper Editor: Nick Holland Get in touch with us on email TheInterview@ and use the hashtag #TheInterviewBBC on social media. (Image: Muhammad Yunus. Credit: Reuters/Yves Herman)
The Independent
13 hours ago
- The Independent
Argentine tribunal allows ex-President Fernández to serve corruption sentence at home
A federal court on Tuesday granted former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's request to serve a six-year prison sentence for corruption at her home in Buenos Aires. Judges ruled that Fernández, 72, can serve time in the apartment where she lives with her daughter and her granddaughter, citing her age and security reasons. Fernández was the victim of an attempted assassination attempt three years ago.
Finextra
15 hours ago
- Finextra
Stablecoin infrastructure startup SaturnX raises $3 million
SaturnX, the infrastructure provider for stablecoin-based cross-border payments, today announced the closing of a $3 million seed round. 0 The round was led by White Star Capital, with participation from strategic institutional investors. Founded by Mirnas Brescic, who brings 15 years of experience in FX, treasury, and digital assets across institutions like Rain, Bitpanda and the IAEA, SaturnX serves as a behind-the-scenes API layer for B2B money transmitters, corporates and financial platforms. In just five months of operation, the company has already processed over $250 million in transaction volume, while maintaining profitability. The capital will be used to accelerate SaturnX's expansion into new payment corridors in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, strengthen regulatory infrastructure, and continue building its end-to-end API platform for enterprise-grade stablecoin payments. With more than $600 billion in global annual remittance flows and rising demand for digital dollars in emerging markets, SaturnX is positioned to become a critical backend provider for the future of borderless payments by modernising how money moves across borders, offering instant, low-cost stablecoin transfers for financial institutions, fintechs, and global remittance providers. 'Our vision is to connect the worlds of decentralised and traditional finance with infrastructure that brings the benefits of stablecoins to everyday financial use cases,' said Mirnas Brescic, CEO and Founder of SaturnX. 'Despite considerable progress, cross-border payments are still expensive and slow. By offering a faster, cheaper, and programmable alternative, we're helping financial partners unlock better ways to move money, starting with the world's largest remittance corridors.' The company pre-funds stablecoin liquidity pools in key markets, aggregates FX pricing in real time, and ensures regulatory compliance via partnerships and licensing pathways. Its flagship corridor, from the Gulf region to South Asia, collectively enables hundreds of millions in annual volume. 'We're excited to back SaturnX at the forefront of a new payment infrastructure layer,' said Sep Alavi, General Partner at White Star Capital. 'They're operating in one of the most strategically important corridors globally, solving a massive pain point for cross-border remittances and B2B payments. Mirnas brings unmatched experience in FX, treasury, and crypto, and he's already shown his ability to execute at speed.'
