Moderator VFD
Dhaka, October 28 – Several billionaires linked with the ruling Awami League government have allegedly laundered approximately 2 trillion Bangladeshi taka ($17 billion USD) from the banking sector with the assistance of the country’s intelligence agencies, according to Ahsan H. Mansur, Governor of Bangladesh Bank, in an interview with the Financial Times.
Ahsan H. Mansur claimed that after gaining control over various banks, these powerful individuals facilitated the transfer of funds to selected shareholders by issuing dubious loans and inflating import invoices (over-invoicing). This systematic looting, Mansur revealed, amounted to about 2 trillion taka or $16.7 billion, siphoned out of Bangladesh.
He further described the incident as “one of the largest instances of bank looting by global standards.” “Nothing of this scale has happened elsewhere,” the Governor stated, adding that such an operation was only possible under state patronage. “This could not have been done without intelligence officials coercing the CEOs of the banks.”
In his interview, Mansur named Saiful Alam, founder and chairman of S. Alam Group, as a central figure in the scandal. He alleged that Alam and his associates embezzled at least $10 billion through what he termed “incremental theft.” “They were granting loans to themselves every single day,” Mansur remarked.
However, in response to the accusations, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, the U.S.-based law firm representing S. Alam Group and Saiful Alam, dismissed Mansur’s claims as “baseless” in an official statement.
This alleged financial scandal raises significant questions about the oversight of Bangladesh’s banking sector and the role of regulatory bodies and state agencies. If verified, it could mark one of the largest cases of state-supported financial crime in the country’s history.
Source: Link
