Court orders seizure of S Alam, family's Tk3,563cr worth shares in 24 cos
The shares are cumulatively worth Tk3,563 crore
Highlights
- A Dhaka court has ordered the seizure of over 32.10 crore shares belonging to Md Saiful Alam and his family
- The shares are valued at approximately Tk3,563 crore
- The ACC reveals that Saiful Alam and his family were attempting to transfer the shares
A Dhaka court on Thursday (16 January) ordered the seizure of over 32.10 crore shares across 24 companies, held by Mohammed Saiful Alam Masud, owner of S Alam Group, and his family members.
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The shares are cumulatively worth Tk3,563 crore.
The court of Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md Zakir Hossain ordered the seizure following the hearing of a writ petition filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
During the hearing, the ACC informed the court that it was aware of attempts by S Alam and his family to transfer the shares. In order to ensure justice, these shares need to be seized, the anti-graft watchdog said.
On 14 January, the same court ordered the freezing of 68 bank accounts belonging to S Alam and his family members.
The court had also directed the confiscation of 16 properties owned by S Alam.
Investigations against the S Alam Group have been going on for some time now as it faces allegations of exploiting banking loopholes to secure massive loans worth thousands of crores of taka as well as money laundering.
The ACC, on 10 January, filed a case against 54 people, including two sons of Saiful Alam Masud, over the alleged embezzlement of Tk1,114 crore from the Jubilee Road branch of Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC in Chattogram city.
In addition to the ACC, the National Board of Revenue (NBR), the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), government intelligence agencies, and other entities are also investigating various irregularities involving the S Alam Group.
According to investigators looking into laundering allegations against the group, its chairman Saiful established 18 shell companies in the British Virgin Islands between 2011 and August 2024, without the required approval from Bangladesh's central bank.
