The government has formed a high-powered committee headed by Bangladesh Bank (BB) to determine the actual liabilities of state-owned Bangladesh Services Limited (BSL) and resolve a long-running dispute with Agrani Bank PLC over a hotel renovation loan whose outstanding amount has ballooned to Tk 9.26 billion, officials said.
The decision followed a series of meetings convened by the Finance Division on April 29 and May 3, chaired by Additional Secretary (TDM and Macroeconomics) Hasan Khaled Foisal, according to official documents.
BSL, the owner of the state-run five-star InterContinental Dhaka, borrowed Tk 5.74 billion from Agrani Bank between 2015 and 2018 to finance extensive structural, electro-mechanical and interior renovation works required to maintain international hospitality standards.
Although the company had repaid Tk 1.93 billion by December 31, 2025 -- including Tk 903.7 million in principal and Tk 1.03 billion in interests -- its total liabilities have risen to Tk 9.26 billion, largely because of accumulated and compounded interest charges.
Audited figures show the outstanding amount comprises Tk 4.84 billion in unpaid principal, Tk 2.37 billion in moratorium-period interest, Tk 647.5 million in interest on moratorium interest, and Tk 1.41 billion in ballooning-method interest.
At the heart of the dispute is about Tk 1.24 billion in interest charges that BSL claims were incorrectly imposed by the state-owned lender.
The company argues that several components of the interest calculation -- including charges stemming from spread-rate variations, day-count adjustments, instalment recalculations and compounded interest during the moratorium period -- were accounting errors that should be corrected in line with international accounting standards.
Agrani Bank, however, maintains that all interest calculations were made in accordance with prevailing banking practices and regulatory requirements.
Bank officials informed the meetings that the disputed amount has been transferred to a blocked account pending a final settlement.
To prevent the liability from escalating further, the meetings decided that no additional interest or penal charges would be imposed on BSL's outstanding obligations from January 1, 2026 until completion of the reconciliation and waiver process.
As part of the initiative, the Finance Division has formed a Loan Reconciliation Committee headed by the Director of Bangladesh Bank's Bank Supervision Department-3.
The committee includes representatives from the Finance Division's Government Debt Management Branch, two Bangladesh Bank officials, SPFMS consultant Md Kamruzzaman FCA, and a representative from the central bank's Bank Supervision Department-3 serving as member secretary.
It has been tasked with reviewing the entire loan history, assessing whether Agrani Bank complied with relevant banking regulations and accounting standards in calculating interest, and determining BSL's actual liability as of December 31, 2025.
A senior official said the committee was given 15 days to submit its findings and recommendations to facilitate a final settlement of the dispute. However, it has yet to submit its report and is still working on the issue.
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