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Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur has voiced strong concerns over the current leadership of mobile financial service provider Nagad, warning that those now in charge may attempt to erase records of past irregularities.
His remarks came amid growing controversy over the legitimacy of Nagad CEO Shafayet Alam’s continued tenure, reports bdnews24.com.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday at the Foreign Service Academy, the governor said: “We believe that Nagad’s operations should not be managed by the current administration. There has been a court ruling, and we have appealed. A hearing is expected soon, and we believe the verdict will go in our favour.”
A day earlier, Mansur had publicly questioned the CEO’s right to remain in office. Speaking to reporters at the Secretariat on Sunday, he said: “Of course, he [Shafayet] committed fraud. He is certainly guilty and has no right to hold this position.”
Reinforcing his concerns on Monday, the governor warned that Nagad’s current leadership could tamper with evidence.
“We are worried because they have already taken full control of the system. They may do many things beyond our reach — like erasing records of their misconduct. They might delete data, which would make our job much more difficult,” he said.
Mansur stressed that Bangladesh Bank’s position on Nagad is “absolutely clear”.
He accused members of Nagad’s previous management and board of various corrupt practices, including the unauthorised creation of Tk 6.5 billion in e-money.
He also alleged that over Tk 20 billion allocated for government poverty alleviation programmes was misappropriated during transactions processed through Nagad, according to findings from a Bangladesh Bank investigation.
Although the governor noted that the current management may not pose immediate new threats, he said commercial banks have been instructed to restrict Nagad’s operations to basic cash-in and cash-out transactions, barring large-scale transfers.
Following the fall of the Awami League government amid mass protests, the central bank dissolved Nagad’s board on Aug 21 last year and appointed its own director, Badiuzzaman Dider, as administrator.
While Badiuzzaman was serving in that role, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) raided Nagad’s offices on Feb 12 over alleged irregularities.
On the same day, Badiuzzaman’s car came under attack in Dhaka’s Banani.
Less than two weeks later, Badiuzzaman was replaced by Motasem Billah, director of the central bank’s Chattogram office.
Nagad subsequently challenged the administrator’s appointment in court.
In a press statement, Nagad said the chamber judge of the Appellate Division declared the administrator’s appointment unlawful. Following the ruling, Shafayet Alam officially resumed his role as CEO last Monday.
Nagad launched its mobile financial services on Mar 26, 2019, and was later licensed to operate as a digital bank.