‘Bring back Islami Bank’s misappropriated funds’

Customers of Shariah-based banks yesterday urged the authorities concerned to bring back funds of Islami Bank Bangladesh which have allegedly been misappropriated by S Alam Group and ensure legal steps against the group’s owner Mohammed Saiful Alam and those who abetted him.
The customers, arriving from different parts of the country and under the banner of “Shariah-Based Islamic Banking Customer Forum”, made the demand by organising a conference at the Hotel Purbani International in Dhaka.
The demands come against the backdrop of the Bangladesh Bank dissolving the Islami Bank Bangladesh board on August 22.
Documents show S Alam Group owns as much as 82 percent stakes in Islami Bank Bangladesh, but the conglomerate maintains it has 32 percent stakes.
The central bank took over S Alam’s shares against its liabilities and the shares would be returned if the conglomerate repays the amount it owes to the Shariah-based bank.
Between 2017 and June this year, the Chattogram-based conglomerate and its associates’ companies took Tk 74,900 crore, which is 47 percent of Islami’s total outstanding loans as of March.
Documents pieced together by The Daily Star show that most of the loans were taken by bypassing banking rules and regulations.
Nearly 10 crore people of the country are directly and indirectly associated with Islamic banking and about 80 lakh expatriates from the Middle East send remittances to the country through Islamic banks, said speakers at yesterday’s conference.
But over the years, the remittance inflow has decreased significantly, they alleged.
The small and medium enterprise sector and economy have been severely affected by the misappropriation of a huge amount of funds of Islami Bank Bangladesh, said Mohammad Abdul Majeed, former secretary and chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR).
The speakers proposed appointing Islami Bank Bangladesh customers as its directors alongside those who were there prior to the group taking on its stakes.
They also demanded reinstatement of officials sacked by S Alam and termination of employment of around 10,000 people employed by S Alam.
Some customers also urged rescheduling their loans for 10 years, citing that they have suffered financially.
In the event, the customers also announced formation of a 15-member committee to run the forum.
Abdul Haque, former director of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and a businessperson in the automobile sector of the country, was made the convener of the forum.
This forum will work to “bring back the lost glory and accountability of Islamic banks”, monitor their activities and protect the interests of customers.
Economist Prof Abu Ahmed was the chief guest at the event.
S Alam is apparently on the run. He did not receive calls yesterday.