Business Desk :
Arab Bangladesh Bank was accused of laundering a total of $55 million in the name of offshore banking. The Bangladesh bank so far recovered $22.1 million and working to recover the rest of the money.
A parliamentary body discussed the matter recently and asked the authorities concerned to identify and take action against the local beneficiaries in this connection. Bangladesh Bank intelligence unit reported that they were working to identify the local beneficiaries of the money laundering.
Abdur Razzaque, chief of the parliamentary standing committee on finance, after a meeting of the committee on Thursday at the parliament disclosed that the money was laundered through an offshore unit of AB bank.The money was given as loans to four firms in Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In 2014 and 2015, the bank provided loans of US$ 1.2 million and US$ 29.5 to Global ME General Trading million and Semat City General Trading of the UAE respectively, while US$ 10 million and US$ 14.4 million to ATZ Communications Pte Limited and Eurocrats Holding Pte Ltd of Singapore respectively.
The loans were provided without scrutinizing the risks and assessing business capabilities, and also against insufficient collateral and equity and others, the report read.
So far the total due including interest has reached US$ 38.76 million, it added. ‘The four overseas organizations were asked to refund the money by September 2016. We have asked the authorities to identify and take action against the local beneficiaries in connection with Arab Bangladesh Bank’s money laundering of US$ 55 million,” Abdur Razzaque said.
All dues from Global ME General Trading have been recovered, Razzaque informed the committee.”Recovering the money is taking time as all the companies are overseas,” he said.
