Saudi investor now selling Islami Bank shares
This move signifies the Saudi company's plan to completely disengage from both the management and ownership responsibilities within the bank
After withdrawing its directorship from the board of Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC, a Saudi Arabian investor is now selling its shares in the country's largest private sector lender.
Thus, Arabsas Travel and Tourist Agency, which owns 9.99% shares in the sharia-based bank, is withdrawing itself from the management and ownership of the lender.
Officials at Islami Bank confirmed the plan to sell shares of Islami Bank held by the Riyadh-based company.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
However, the bank's Managing Director Mohammed Monirul Moula and Company Secretary JQM Habibullah did not response multiple phone calls seeking their comment in this regard.
According to a report of the Bangladesh Bank, the bank is now suffering from a liquidity crisis due to various irregularities. It is not able to maintain the cash reserve ratio (CRR) as per requirements by the central bank. The bank is constantly being fined for this. In this situation, the central bank is keeping the transaction activities of the lender normal by occasionally lending money.
In its shareholding report for July this year, Islami Bank said Arabsas Travel and Tourist Agency withdrew the directorship by sending a letter on 5 July, and the bank approved it on 26 July in a board meeting. Earlier, Musaid Abdullah A Al-Rajhi served as the director of the bank for a long time on behalf of the company.
Besides, in July, Islami Bank appointed Abu Sayeed Mohammad Quasem, nominated by Armada Spinning Mills, Showkat Hossain, nominated by Kingsway Endeavors, and Jamal Mostafa Chowdhury, nominated by Uniglobe Business Resources, as shareholder directors.
The three organisations jointly hold 11.07% shares of Islami Bank.
In June, three companies withdrew their directorships from the bank. At that time, Professor Nazmul Hasan, Professor Salim Uddin and Major General (retd) Abdul Matin were the nominee directors of these three companies on the board of the bank.
Earlier in the same month, Ahsanul Alam, son of S Alam Group Chairman Saiful Alam Masood, was appointed as a shareholder director of the bank as a nominee of JMC Builders.
