Five Shariah banks owe Tk 373.32b to banks, FIs

Five Shariah banks undergoing a merger are facing a massive collective liability of approximately Tk 373.32 billion (Tk 37,332 crore) in fixed deposits owed to various banks and financial institutions, according to a report of the Bangladesh Bank released on Tuesday.

The report studied the state of the five banks.

Of them, the highest liability of Tk 101.85 billion (Tk 10,185 crore) lies with First Security Islami Bank, while Union Bank has a liability of Tk 86.31 billion (Tk 8,631 crore). The Exim Bank has a liability of Tk 81.57 billion (Tk 8,157 crore), followed by the Social Islami Bank with a liability of Tk 57.91 billion (Tk 5,791 crore) and the Global Islami Bank with Tk 45.68 billion (Tk 4,568 crore), reports UNB.

In addition to the five banks, the Padma Bank is also reportedly failing to return deposits, contributing to a broader liquidity crisis.

Arif Hossain Khan, executive director and spokesperson for the BB said, “Where an institution places its money is its own business policy. The main problem here is corruption, not a lack of policy. These issues will not be resolved unless corruption is stopped.”

Bangladesh Bank’s (BB) latest report exposes the fragile state of the banking sector.