NBR unfreezes bank accounts of UCB chairman Sharif Zahir, family members

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) on Thursday lifted the freeze on the bank accounts of Sharif Zahir, the Managing Director of Ananta Group and Chairman of United Commercial Bank, along with those of his family members.

The NBR's Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) earlier on Tuesday instructed banks to halt transactions from these accounts as part of an ongoing investigation.

Officials confirmed the development, stating that the bank accounts of four members of Sharif Zahir's family have also been unfrozen.

The NBR had recently initiated a probe into allegations of tax evasion against Sharif Zahir and his family. The accounts, which were frozen through a CIC letter dated December 1, 2024, were fully unfrozen via another CIC letter issued on December 5, 2024.

The initial freezing of accounts raised concerns within the business community.

“Such actions may create uncertainty within the business community and undermine stakeholder confidence in the banking sector,” said Romo Rouf Chowdhury, Vice-Chairman of the Bangladesh Association of Banks.

A senior NBR official said only the fund transfer has been unfrozen while vault and locker remained frozen.

"We have unfrozen the fund transfer only following the request of the taxpayer to pay wages to garment workers."

The proceedings on the tax investigation are running in full swing, he added.

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