The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has requested all scheduled banks in the country to provide detailed account information on three former Bangladesh Bank governors and six other former top officials, including four deputy governors, at the request of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
The intelligence agency issued a letter in this regard, asking banks to provide the account details of the identified individuals within three working days, with the deadline set to expire on August 18.
The three former governors are Dr Atiur Rahman, Fazle Kabir, and Abdur Rouf Talukder. The four former deputy governors are SK Sur Chowdhury (currently in prison), SM Moniruzzaman, Kazi Sayedur Rahman, and Abu Farah Md Nasser.
The two former BFIU heads are Abu Hena Mohammad Razee Hassan and Md Masud Biswas.
"We've sought bank account-related information at the request of the Anti-Corruption Commission," a senior BFIU official told Financial Express (FE).
He added that the BFIU provides such information to the relevant authorities after collecting it from the banks.
The letter also requested account opening forms, KYC (Know Your Customer) documents, transaction profiles, and other related data. These former governors, deputy governors, and BFIU heads led the banking sector as regulators during the Awami League government.
Following nearly 17 years of Awami League rule, massive financial irregularities in the banking sector came to light after last year's July-August mass uprising and the subsequent change of state power.
Dr Atiur Rahman's tenure as Bangladesh Bank governor was marked by major controversies, including the 2016 cyber heist, in which $101 million was stolen from the central bank's account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Amid heavy criticism at home and abroad, he resigned. The government later recovered $20 million of the stolen funds from Sri Lanka.
Earlier, he faced criticism for approving loan restructuring for several business groups, including Beximco, reportedly under political pressure. During his tenure, major financial irregularities, such as the Hallmark Loan Scam at state-owned Sonali Bank, caused significant losses and raised questions about the central bank's oversight.
Fazle Kabir is considered one of the most controversial governors in Bangladesh Bank's history. During his tenure, the Chattogram-based S Alam Group forcibly took control of six unconventional banks, including a leading private bank, without regulatory intervention, causing continued losses.
In April 2020, his administration capped lending rates at 9 per cent, a move widely believed to have hurt both the banking sector and the wider economy. The exchange rate was also kept artificially stable for months to benefit vested interests, creating forex market volatility.
After Mr Kabir, Abdur Rouf Talukder assumed central bank leadership, continuing to facilitate controversial business entities and bypass regulatory norms. Under his leadership, the bank injected high-powered money to cover CRR and SLR shortfalls, which contributed to higher inflation and adversely affected citizens across all sectors.
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