BFIU fines Premier Bank, officials Tk 3.44 crore

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has fined Premier Bank and several of its officials, including former managing director (MD) M Reazul Karim, a total of Tk 3.44 crore for alleged money laundering and assisting the bank's former chairman, HBM Iqbal, and his family in transferring foreign currency abroad through credit card misuse.

In a letter sent to Premier Bank's MD on Tuesday, the BFIU detailed the disciplinary actions and instructed the bank to deposit the fine with Bangladesh Bank by November 16, warning that the amount would otherwise be deducted directly from its BB account.

Premier Bank's MD Mohammad Abu Jafar did not respond to phone calls seeking comment, but Arifur Rahman, the current chairman, confirmed the matter to The Daily Star.

BFIU officials said Iqbal and four of his family members used Premier Bank credit cards to purchase properties and conduct excessive foreign transactions beyond permissible foreign exchange limits.

The BFIU fined Premier Bank Tk 2.20 crore for facilitating these irregularities and failing to report suspicious transactions, while Tk 1.24 crore was imposed collectively on responsible officials.

Investigations revealed the bank violated several provisions of the Money Laundering Prevention Act by illegally opening Resident Foreign Currency Deposit (RFCD) accounts, irregularly depositing funds, and failing to maintain mandatory declaration forms.

It also found that five RFCD accounts and 18 credit cards were used for suspicious transactions that were never reported.

The probe uncovered that $100,000 was transferred from another client's Exporters' Retention Quota (ERQ) account to accounts belonging to Iqbal and his son, Moin Iqbal. The BFIU termed the act "theft" and fined the bank Tk 1 crore for the transfer.

Among the officials penalised, former MD Reazul Karim and Additional MD Syed Nowsher Ali were fined Tk 30 lakh each, while former Banani branch operations manager Monirul Karim Liton faced a Tk 22 lakh fine.

Two former heads of the bank's card division were fined Tk 10 lakh each, and another official, Zakir Hossain Jitu, Tk 22 lakh for repeatedly raising card limits in violation of rules.

The BFIU also ordered the bank to take administrative action against the involved officials.

Investigators found that Iqbal, his sons Mohammad Imran and Moin Iqbal, his daughter Naurin Iqbal, and Moin's wife Yasna Puja Iqbal held 18 international and four prepaid credit cards.

Between 2022 and 2024, they spent $3.25 million through these cards, far exceeding foreign exchange limits.

Iqbal, who co-founded Premier Bank in 1999 and chaired it for 26 years, stepped down in January 2025. His and his family's accounts were frozen under the Anti-Money Laundering Act in November 2024.

Earlier, in April 2025, the BFIU fined the bank for allowing Iqbal to withdraw Tk 1.11 crore and $30,000 from frozen accounts.