BB approval must to hold 5pc or more shares

Any individual or institution willing to hold directly or indirectly 5 per cent shares or more in any commercial bank will now require permission from Bangladesh Bank to do so. The central bank on Monday asked those who already control 5pc shares or more in any bank to inform it within a month. BB officials say several banks have more than two members from the same family on their boards. The central bank wants to ensure that the commercial banks' shares are not monopolised by a single person or a single family or an institution. Shareholders will have to apply on specific forms, which have been sent to banks along with Monday's circular. According to BB, the National Bank has 5 members of a family on its board while the City Bank has 9 directors from two families. Premier Bank has 4 and First Security Islami Bank has 3 directors from the same family. As per the new directive, those who have over 5% shares will have to inform the BB about how they got the shares while seeking approval, according to a news agency.