Bangladesh Bank (BB) has moved to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the financial intelligence unit (FIU) of Switzerland for gathering information on the money-laundering matters.
The central bank's latest move came as deposits made by Bangladeshi nationals with different Swiss banks reportedly swelled by 62 per cent to Tk 32.36 billion (372 million Swiss francs) in 2013 from Tk 19.91 billion in 2012. Presently, there is no scope to transfer money using banking channel as Bangladesh has yet to allow its currency to convert under capital account. But the central bank will scrutinize as to whether the money has been laundered through over-and under- invoicing, officials said.
The central bank has already sent documents related to capital machinery imports under textile, garment and energy and power sectors to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for taking necessary measures.
"We've sent the documents to the ACC after recording a 'hefty' growth of the capital machinery imports in the first half of the outgoing fiscal year (FY) 2013-14 despite political uncertainty," a BB official told the FE.
The opening of letters of credit (LC) for the import of capital machinery, generally known as import orders, jumped by more than 67 per cent in the H1 of FY 14 compared with the previous corresponding time.
On the other hand, settlement of LCs--generally known as actual import--for the capital machinery increased 16.60 per cent during the period under review against the same period of the last fiscal.
"We want to see whether there is any attempt to siphon off money abroad through over-invoicing under capital-machinery imports," the central banker noted.
Besides, the BB will install an integrated automated system for sharing information on foreign trade between the central bank and the National Board of Revenue (NBR) shortly to check money laundering through fake imports.
"We're going to introduce the integrated system to check irregularities in the foreign trade," Nazneen Sultana, deputy governor of the BB, told the FE Sunday.
She also said the central bank is now monitoring all kinds of foreign-exchange transactions through an electronic system, generally known as 'dashboard', to check fraud and forgery in the country's banking sector.
"The central bank is now working to sign a deal with the FIU of Switzerland to share information on money-laundering issue," M Mahfuzur Rahman, executive director of the BB, told the FE.
He also said BB has already signed such deal with 24 countries, including the United Kingdom, Japan, Sri Lanka, India, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Malaysia and the Philippines.
Bangladesh as a member of the Egmont Group, a forum of the Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) of different countries, is now empowered to exchange information on money laundering and terror financing among its member-countries.
An FIU is a central, national agency responsible for receiving (and, as permitted, requesting), analysing and disseminating to the competent authorities disclosures of financial intelligence.
Bangladesh got the membership at an annual general meeting of the Egmont in Sun City, South Africa, on July 3 last year.
The Group has now 147 members across the world to promote and enhance international cooperation in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing and to foster the implementation of domestic programmes in this field.
