In a shocking financial scandal, a company that existed only on paper managed to obtain Tk 950 crore from Islami Bank Bangladesh within just two days.
Market Master Analyzer Ltd, the firm in question, successfully secured Tk 450 crore on 10 August 2022 and Tk 500 crore the following day, as per documents reviewed by The Daily Star.
The company is owned by an employee of Nabil Group and a relative of its chairman.
The funds were disbursed by the bank’s Gulshan-1 branch in blatant disregard of standard banking regulations. The total outstanding loan amount has since surged to Tk 1,054 crore.
Market Master Analyzer obtained this massive loan merely a month after its registration with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms (RJSC) on 6 July 2022, despite having an authorised capital of just Tk 5 crore.
The company’s registered address was listed in Banani, Dhaka. However, upon visiting the location, no such company was found, though an office of Nabil Group was nearby.
The company is owned by two individuals: Chairman Md Shariful Islam and Managing Director Md Sha Alam.
Investigations have revealed that Shariful Islam is a close relative of Md Aminul Islam, the founder and managing director of Nabil Group. Sha Alam is a junior officer at Nabil Group’s Rajshahi office. When questioned, he refused to disclose any information about the firm’s operations or how it managed to secure such a large loan.
Aminul Islam denied any involvement with Market Master Analyzer, asserting that if any of Nabil Group’s 13,000 employees or his relatives took a loan, it was not his concern. He advised the reporter to seek answers from the bank instead.
Role of Bank Officials
Islami Bank, once a reputed financial institution, has been systematically exploited by influential groups.
A recent central bank inspection report disclosed that S Alam Group and its close business associate, Nabil Group, have secured an astonishing 87 percent of Islami Bank’s total loan portfolio.
Much of this money was allegedly funnelled through over 100 shadow companies.
Central bank officials stated that had proper due diligence been conducted, Market Master Analyzer would never have qualified for such a loan.
Mohammad Mozahidul Islam, the executive vice president of Islami Bank, was leading the Gulshan-1 branch when these loans were granted. He has since been transferred to the Foreign Exchange Corporate Branch in Dilkusha.
When contacted, he claimed he had merely followed the bank management’s directives and declined further comment.
Three senior officials of Islami Bank, speaking anonymously, disclosed that the bank’s managing director, Mohammed Monirul Moula, had personally instructed the branch manager over the phone to approve the loan immediately, bypassing standard verification procedures.
Despite multiple attempts, The Daily Star was unable to obtain a response from Monirul. Phone calls and WhatsApp messages went unanswered, and efforts to meet him at Islami Bank’s head office in Motijheel were unsuccessful.
Nazrul Islam, head of brand and communication at Islami Bank, was also approached for comment. He stated that Monirul had refrained from meeting the media since the political shift in August last year.
Monirul was among 58 individuals charged by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in December last year for allegedly embezzling Tk 1,092 crore through fraudulent loan schemes.
Other accused include former Islami Bank chairman Ahsanul Alam and members of the S Alam family.
Investigations Underway
Nabil Group is among 10 major business conglomerates currently under investigation by a joint task force.
The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has frozen the bank accounts of Aminul Islam and his family members as part of the ongoing inquiry.
Context on Financial Irregularities in Bangladesh:
This scandal is reflective of the broader financial sector challenges in Bangladesh, where politically connected entities often secure enormous loans with little scrutiny. Such irregularities have contributed to rising non-performing loans (NPLs), which pose a significant threat to the country’s banking stability. The ongoing investigation into Islami Bank’s lending practices is expected to reveal further details on how such large-scale financial misconduct has been facilitated over the years.