BSEC appoints independent directors to 3 Beximco Group companies

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission, or BSEC, has appointed independent directors to three companies associated with the Beximco Group, one of the largest conglomerates in the country.

A total of 25 independent directors have been selected for posts at Beximco Limited, Beximco Pharmaceuticals, and Shinepukur Ceramics.

Beximco Pharma is listed on Bangladesh’s stock market as well as the London Stock Exchange.

Earlier, the regulatory body had decided to conduct a special audit on these three listed companies on Dec 10.

Salman F Rahman, the private industry and investment advisor to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, is the vice chairman of Beximco Group. Since the fall of the government, the factories of the group have been facing various issues, including worker unrest.

Many of the directors of Beximco Group are in hiding. The group’s companies have been in a financial crisis due to the cessation of money transfers from banks. Workers have taken to the streets after not receiving salaries, forcing the government to arrange their pay for three months.

A committee has been formed at the advisory level of the government to maintain the employment of about 40,000 workers and employees of Beximco Group, manage law and order, and oversee the future of these companies in the interest of the country’s economy.

That committee decided to divide the group’s companies into three classes. It was decided to continue the companies that were profitable. Following this, independent directors were appointed to manage the three companies.

A BSEC press release on Wednesday said, “In the meeting of the Advisory Council Committee on the Review of Labour and Business Situation of Industrial Establishments of Beximco Industrial Park (Dec 11, 2024), it was decided that the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission will appoint independent directors to the listed companies of Beximco Group in the stock market in consideration of the overall situation.”

Shares worth Tk 8.1 million of Beximco Pharmaceuticals changed hands on the block market of the Dhaka Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Some 100,000 shares were exchanged at a price of Tk 81.30 per share.

A large transfer of shares for a company in the block market indicates that a new management is being appointed.