MD Washek provided loans to his relatives
First Security Islami Bank (FSIBL) Managing Director (MD) Syed Wasek Md. Ali has been accused of abusing his power to provide loans worth crores of taka to his relatives’ institutions. This loan was approved ignoring banking regulations, where adequate collateral was not kept. Even after it was listed in the defaulter’s book, no effective action was taken to recover these loans.
Not only MD Wasek Md. Ali, but Deputy Managing Director (DMD) Masudur Rahman Shah and Manager Mohiuddin Biswas also provided a large loan to an institution through irregularities. That loan is also now listed in the defaulter’s book. This information has come to light after reviewing the bank’s internal documents.
Sources said that during the control of the controversial Chittagong-based business group S Alam, there were widespread irregularities and looting in First Security Islami Bank. MD Syed Wasek Md. Ali is also involved in these irregularities. The bank’s board was reconstituted after the fall of the Awami League government. Along with this, Bangladesh Bank is conducting a special audit of the bank to find out the real financial picture of the bank. For this reason, the accused MD was sent on compulsory leave last month. In the meantime, information came to light against him for illegally providing loans to a relative’s company. And this information has come up in an internal report of the bank itself.
A review of internal documents showed that the customer of the bank’s Dilkusha branch is Modern Industries Bangladesh Limited, owned by MD Syed Wasek Md. Ali’s brother Syed Tarek Md. Ali. The company’s current loan balance is 112.3 million taka, which was supposed to be paid in 2020, but no installment has been paid. The information was concealed by transferring accounts in various ways for the loan disbursed in 2013. The collateral was overvalued at the time of loan approval. Syed Wasek Md. Ali and former AMD Syed Habib Hasnat were the officials in the settlement of this loan.
Apart from this, the Gulshan branch customer is Ali Properties Limited’s Managing Director Syed Toufiq Hossain Ali, who is also the cousin of MD Syed Wasek Md. Ali. The loan of this company was sanctioned without approval, which currently stands at Tk 3.18 crore. After taking the loan, no installment was paid, but rather the information of the default was kept secret by repeatedly rescheduling it.
Similarly, a company called Basthan Development Limited is owned by another cousin of the MD. The company received a loan of Tk 4.5 crore. At that time, Syed Wasek Md. Ali was the manager of the bank’s Motijheel branch. After giving the loan, the collateral was released without approval, resulting in the loan becoming defaulted.
The document review also revealed that a loan of Tk 40 crore more than the approval was given to M/s Times Securities Limited, a paper company owned by the bank’s former controller S Alam Group. Later, Tk 39 crore interest was waived. The company’s current liabilities are Tk 82 crore, with no collateral.
In addition, the then manager and current DMD of Gulshan branch, Masudur Rahman Shah, gave Tk 50 crore to Habib Hotel International through five pay orders. Five months after giving the money without any collateral, a loan of Tk 100 crore was approved in December 2018. The next manager, Mohiuddin Biswas, also gave another Tk 30 crore through a similar pay order. The company’s loan defaulted in 2019. Despite not paying any installment, this loan was rescheduled repeatedly. The company’s current liabilities with First Security Bank are Tk 177.58 crore.
Accused MD Syed Wasek Md. Ali did not answer his mobile phone when he was called several times to comment on these allegations. Later, he did not respond even though he sent messages to his mobile and WhatsApp numbers and asked for a statement.
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