The list of the top 20 loan defaulters placed in parliament by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury on Monday includes listed firms BEXIMCO Ltd, Keya Cosmetics, and S. Alam Cold Rolled Steels.
Financial data of the listed firms are publicly available, while those of the rest are not, as they are not bound to disclose financial performance.
The list was prepared based on the amounts of defaulted loans until December last year.
BEXIMCO, the flagship company of the Beximco Group, has been facing significant challenges since the political changeover in August 2024.
Salman F Rahman, vice-chairman of the conglomerate, was a private sector industry and investment adviser to the Hasina-led Awami League government. His influence within the ousted government helped the group's companies secure a huge amount of loans and created scope for non-repayment without facing any regulatory action.
Following the fall of the regime, the newly formed securities commission appointed independent directors to the BEXIMCO board in January last year.
The company suffered a loss of Tk 359 million in FY24 for the first time, due mainly to lower sales amid political unrest. BEXIMCO has not yet published financial statements for FY25 following the closure of textile units amid workers' unrest over non-payment of wages and salaries.
The company's textile units have remained shut due to the non-availability of banking facilities. No bank has opened any LCs since August 2024. Moreover, stocks of fabrics and yarns, which could not be used, had to be sold below cost price, as the garment units were also shut.
The stock of BEXIMCO is one of the two securities that still have a floor price imposed on them. It has been stuck at the floor of Tk 110.10 per share.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has taken several punitive measures, including imposing penalties on individuals linked to the group.
In October 2024, a record fine of more than Tk 4.28 billion was slapped on nine individuals and entities for manipulating BEXIMCO share prices.
Beximco Communication is also on the list of loan defaulters.
The owners of S. Alam Cold Rolled Steels and other organisations of the controversial S Alam Group are accused of laundering a massive amount of money.
S. Alam Cold Rolled Steels is a junk stock. The company has not published financial statements since FY23.
The steel manufacturer has had its bank accounts frozen and has been facing restrictions on opening letters of credit (L/Cs) in banks since the 2024 political changeover. However, it claims to have somehow managed to continue production and supplies.
S. Alam Cold Rolled Steels had an outstanding loan of Tk 20 billion as of November 2024 at Janata Bank. The bank said the loans were deemed defaulted due to non-payment under the agreed conditions. Despite repeated demands, the borrower failed to settle the dues.
Mohammed Saiful Alam, owner of S Alam Cold Rolled Steels and the chairman of the group, was highly influential in the banking sector during the Hasina regime.
The third listed company named as a top defaulter-Keya Cosmetics-has its stock in the junk category.
The company has not published financial statements since FY20.
Keya Group declared the permanent closure of four factories from May last year, citing market instability, discrepancies in bank accounts, raw material shortages, and inadequate production activities.
The closure followed weeks of worker unrest over unpaid salaries and other demands. Workers of the Keya Group factories had been protesting since December 2024.
The company last reported a profit of Tk 236 million in FY20. Since then, it has not filed any financial statements. The stock closed at Tk 5 per share on Monday.
The finance minister told parliament that the aggregate amount of non-performing loans stood at Tk 5.44 trillion as of December last year. He said the government was holding quarterly meetings with the senior management of banks to define ways of loan recovery.
The central bank has also been reviewing the progress in loan recovery.
The minister also said half of the 20 defaulters are companies belonging to the S Alam Group. Those firms, along with other non-listed firms, are S Alam Super Edible Oil, S Alam Vegetable Oil, S Alam Refined Sugar Industries, Sonali Traders, Global Trading Corporation, Chemon Ispat, S Alam Trading Company Private, Infinite CR Strips Industries, Deshbandhu Sugar Mills, PowerPac Mutiara Keraniganj Power Plant, PowerPac Mutiara Jamalpur Power Plant, Pacific Bangladesh Telecom, Karnafuly Foods, Murad Enterprise, CLC Power Company, Beximco Communications, and Rongdhanu Builders.
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