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The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) has issued the monetary policy for the upcoming fiscal year 2082/83 (2025-26).

Unveiling the monetary policy, the Governor of the Central Bank, Dr Biswo Nath Poudel, stated that a flexible policy has been adopted cautiously.

The monetary policy mentions approving and implementing the second financial sector strategy.

The bank rate, which serves as the upper limit of the interest rate corridor, has been set at six per cent, and the policy rate at four and a half per cent. Previously, the bank rate was 6.5 per cent and the policy rate was 5 per cent.

According to the monetary policy, the limit for loans issued for the construction and purchase of private residential houses has been increased from Rs 20 million to Rs 30 million. 

When constructing or purchasing the first house, a loan-to-value ratio of up to 80 per cent can be maintained, while for others, a maximum of 70 per cent can be established.

The limit for personal share collateral loans has been increased from Rs 150 million to Rs 250 million.The limit for the amount Nepalese traveling abroad can carry has been increased from two thousand five hundred US dollars to three thousand US dollars.

The monetary policy has set a target to increase the private sector loan disbursement by 12 per cent in the upcoming fiscal year.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli cautioned that human existence could be at risk if the population growth does not take place equally alongside development and prosperity.

He said so at a program organized by the Ministry of Health and Population today to mark the World Population Day-2025 and to introduce the National Population Policy-2082 BS.

Emphasizing the need for development to align with population growth/demographic dividend, Oli stated that everyone should view childbearing as a responsibility towards the Earth.

"Every country has a meaning because of humans. As humans, we give meaning to the earth as well. If there were no population, there would not be a country either," the PM asserted, calling for suitable policies and timely action to protect the prosperous existence of the human race. 

He argued that the human race is the most valuable source for creation and thus urged people to stop killing people for personal gain. 

Hitting out at irony, he said, "Holding seminars on population while continuing to kill people by making weapons of mass destruction will endanger the existence of humankind."

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said the government, youths and women entrepreneurs should work together for the country's prosperity.

Inaugurating the International Women Leadership Conference, 2082 organized by the Federation of Women Entrepreneurs' Association of Nepal today, Prime Minister Oli stressed the need of achieving success by working together for prosperity.  

He mentioned, "We should achieve prosperity through development of entrepreneurship. The government has given high importance to youths and women entrepreneurship. I am confident that the conclusion drawn from this conference will help to fulfill the government's priorities."

The PM added that the country has been implementing provisions mentioned in the Constitution for women empowerment in practice.

"We have guaranteed at least 33 percent representation of women in three levels. The number of girl students is higher than that of boys in schools. Girl students have been achieving good results. We have to achieve further progress," PM Oli argued.

Insurance companies have paid out nearly Rs 73bn in claims over the first eleven months of the current fiscal year 2024/25. Data released by the National Insurance Authority (NIA), the insurance sector regulator, shows 14 life insurance companies, three micro-life insurers, 14 non-life insurers and four micro non-life insurers settled claims worth Rs 72.94bn in 11 months of the current fiscal year.

While payouts by life insurance companies declined slightly, non-life insurance claims have increased in the current fiscal year largely due to losses from floods and landslides in September last year. In the same period of the previous fiscal year, insurance companies settled Rs 69.98bn in total claims. Life insurers had paid out Rs 52.64bn in claims across 238,608 individual cases by mid-June 2025, down from Rs 53.96bn paid to settle 268,677 cases in the same period last year. This marks an 11.19 percent decrease in the number of claims settled and a 2.45 percent drop in total payouts.

Likewise, non-life insurers paid out Rs 20.30bn in claims across 127,282 cases during the review period. Last year, they had paid Rs 16.02bn for 134,534 claims. Although the number of claims settled dropped by 5.39 percent, the payout amount rose by 26.74 percent. Despite this, pending life insurance claims have risen significantly. As of mid-June, insurance companies had yet to settle 54,422 claims worth Rs 4.58bn. At the same point last year, the number of pending claims stood at 39,287, amounting to Rs 2.87bn. This means the number of unsettled claims has grown by 38.49 percent, and the pending amount has surged by 59.61 percent.

The number and value of unsettled claims have also increased in the non-life segment. By mid-June, non-life companies had 106,757 pending claims worth Rs 30.46bn-an increase of 4.41 percent in the number of cases and 50.38 percent in the total amount. In the same period last year, there were 102,251 such claims amounting to Rs 20.26bn in outstanding amounts.