5 cos, including BEXIMCO, Beximco Pharma under fresh probe

The securities regulator has formed a four-member body to probe whether five companies, including three from Beximco Group, are compliant to protect the interest of investors and the capital market.

The companies are BEXIMCO, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Shinepukur Ceramics, Ratanpur Steel Re-Rolling Mills (RSRM), and New Line Clothings.

The committee led by Muhammad Ziaur Rahman, additional director, has been asked to submit an inquiry report within 15 working days.

Md. Abul Kalam, a spokesperson of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), said the matters tied to joint share holding by sponsor-directors, submission of financial statements, and annual general meetings (AGMs) would be scrutinised to see if the companies were compliant.

Investigators will also see if the companies' shares have been subject to insider trading, he said.

The companies belonging to the Beximco Group have already been under the scrutiny of the securities regulator and the government as controversial business tycoon Salam F Rahman, vice chairman of the Beximco Group, was part of the previous government.

The BSEC has intensified its vigilance over the companies' operations, considering their significant shares in the broad index.

Any large erosion in the share prices of BEXIMCO and Beximco Pharmaceuticals leaves a massive dent on the exchange's broad index.

Retail investors of listed companies of the Beximco Group are worried as many units of the companies have already closed. Now, the companies' liabilities surpassed the worth of their assets.

Beximco Group reportedly has more than Tk 400 billion in loans taken from several banks, most of which turned sour. Shinepukur Ceramics has short-term loans of Tk 694 million as of December last year.

In a recent order, the securities regulator asked the listed companies, whose sponsor-directors do not hold the minimum 30 per cent joint stakes, to appoint independent directors.

The 'Z' category companies have also been asked to deploy independent directors.

Of the five companies that have come under a fresh probe, Ratanpur Steel Re-rolling Mills have 29.93 per cent joint stakes of sponsor-directors as of April 2025.

The company, which belongs to Z category on the bourses, reported a record loss of Tk 379 million for FY21 following a gradual decline in profits since FY17.

The website of the prime bourse has no information regarding the company's financial performance since FY21.

Another company, NewLine Clothings has also published no financial data on the DSE website since FY21. In April this year, a DSE team visited the company and found it closed.

mufazal.fe@gmail.com