Crisis-hit Islami banks to merge into state-run entity, says BB Governor

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Ahsan H Mansur announced on Tuesday that several crisis-hit Islami banks will be merged into a single state-owned entity to safeguard depositors’ interests. 

“Protecting depositors’ assets is the central bank’s top priority. The survival of individual banks is secondary,” Dr Mansur said during a press conference held to mark the release of the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) annual report.

Responding to a question, the governor noted that investigations into money laundering cases are sometimes delayed due to lack of coordination among ministries and overlapping roles among agencies. He expressed optimism that amendments to the Money Laundering Prevention Act would empower the taskforce to recover stolen funds more effectively, thereby accelerating investigations.

Meanwhile, BFIU head AFM Shahinul Islam reported that Bangladesh improved its ranking by 13 places, moving from 46th to 59th in the Basel Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Index 2024. 

Speaking at the same press conference, he attributed the progress to intensified anti-money laundering efforts.

Islam highlighted that between July 2024 and May 2025, 17 agencies reported 27,130 Suspicious Transaction Reports (STR) and Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR). 

Of these, the BFIU received 17,345 reports, a 23 per cent increase from the previous year. 

The unit forwarded 114 intelligence reports to law enforcement and investigative agencies and shared 1,220 pieces of information related to money laundering cases, marking a 13.91 per cent rise compared to the prior year.

Senior officials from Bangladesh Bank and BFIU attended the press conference.