In a major crackdown on financial crime, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has frozen domestic and international assets worth 760 billion taka (approximately £4.8 billion or $6.4 billion) belonging to the deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her family, and ten major business conglomerates. The announcement was made by the BFIU chief, Ikhtiar Uddin Mohammad Mamun, during the release of the agency’s annual report at the central bank headquarters in Dhaka.
According to the BFIU chief, the massive asset freeze is the result of a coordinated multi-agency investigation. Of the total frozen assets, local holdings worth 570 billion taka have been seized within Bangladesh. In addition, international cooperation has enabled the freezing of offshore assets and bank accounts valued at 190 billion taka.
Efforts to recover the laundered wealth and return it to the state coffer are currently underway. The financial intelligence chief expressed optimism about the ongoing recovery process, stating that diplomatic and legal channels are being actively pursued to repatriate the stolen funds. He hinted that positive news regarding the repatriation of these overseas assets might be expected by the end of the year.
Addressing concerns regarding potential political bias in these investigations, the BFIU chief emphasised that the agency maintains a strictly neutral stance. He clarified that bank accounts are frozen solely based on suspicious transaction patterns and financial intelligence, regardless of political affiliation. He further noted that if any members of the current interim administration are found to be involved in financial irregularities, they will face the same level of scrutiny.
The investigation targets a network of powerful business groups that flourished during the previous regime. A joint task force, formed under the interim government, is investigating these entities for systemic tax evasion, illegal asset accumulation, and trade-based money laundering. The ten conglomerates currently under the scanner are:
S. Alam Group
Beximco Group
Nabil Group
Summit Group
Orion Group
Nassa Group
Bashundhara Group
Premier Group (owned by Dr H.B.M. Iqbal)
Sikder Group
Aramit Group (associated with the former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed)
Legal proceedings have already commenced alongside the asset freezes. To strengthen its legal standing in foreign jurisdictions, the BFIU is in the process of signing agreements with specialised international asset recovery agencies. These partnerships aim to navigate the complex legal frameworks required to repatriate laundered sovereign wealth back to Bangladesh.