Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited has been contributing significantly in the country’s agriculture sector.
Since its inception, the bank has been working for development of agricultural sector, which is the livelihood of 80 percent of people of the country directly or indirectly.
Over the last 5 years, the bank invested more than Tk 60 billion in agriculture sector. The bank also trained two-and-a-half million farmers on using modern technology in cultivation.
The bank is also giving priority investment in agricultural marketing, agricultural support industries and storing of agro goods. The bank is contributing to achieve the country’s economic prosperity through implementation of investment projects like Agricultural Implements Investment Scheme, Rural Development Scheme (RDS) and Small Business Investment Scheme, according to sources.
Under the directive of the Bangladesh Bank to invest 2.5 percent of total investment of each scheduled bank in agriculture and rural sectors, Islami Bank had to invest Tk 75.5 billion in the last fiscal in the same sector.
The bank has invested a total of Tk 1.319 billion in this sector, which is 9 percent of disbursed amount among all banks and 23 percent among the private banks in the sector. 

The central bank governor yesterday accused banks of holding up employees, including female staff, way past the banking hours, a move that can be termed a serious allegation against the institutions.

“Bank officials and employees, even the female staff, are unnecessarily told to stay in the office on the pretext of work even after the close of banking hours at 6:00pm. This is not humane,” Bangladesh Bank Governor Atiur Rahman said at a meeting with chief executives of all banks. BB has been receiving complaints of forced resignations, suspensions of yearly increments and promotions, terminations or removal of employees and later creating obstacles for receiving their dues, he said. 

In many cases, the administrative measures were taken against the bank officials and employees unjustly or intentionally, he said.

There have also been allegations that many banks have a clause in their human resource policy which allows them to terminate an employee without showing any cause.

“This may result in the destruction of a long banking career of good officials. Such practices may turn out to be obstructions to the development of the banking sector,” Rahman said, adding that strict measures will be taken if the allegations are proved.

About the BB governor's allegations, several private and state bank officials told The Daily Star that some high officials do not start work until afternoon, due to which many are held back until night.

“I don't know what happens in other banks, but Mutual Trust Bank always encourages, especially the female staff, to leave office before 6pm,” Anis A Khan, managing director of MTB, said.

“In fact, during winter times, when it gets dark earlier, I encourage the female staff to even leave at 5pm,” he added.

Meanwhile, Rahman also said the banks have been setting illogical deposit collection targets for their employees.

As a result, the officials are less interested in serving their clients and more focused on bringing in new deposits, he said. “This has created an unhealthy competition.”

The central bank governor also said the banks are setting profit targets beyond their abilities and not giving proper attention to business development.

“The chief executives of banks also accept such illogical profit targets to appease the boards. And to meet the targets, the officials resort to various immoral tactics. It creates scope for irregularities and fraud.”

Subsequently, he urged banks to be more cautious when it comes to collecting deposits and earning profits.

Rahman yesterday completed six years at the helm of BB.  At the meeting, all MDs congratulated him and said during this period the foreign exchange reserves crossed the unprecedented $24 billion mark. The governor also encouraged the bankers to appoint female deputy managing directors, and asked them to fix the maximum age limit of entry into service for children of freedom fighters at 32 years.

Prime Bank was awarded for contributing to remittance in a programme titled Investment, Remittance & Financial Branding organised by the Centre for Non-Resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) at a city hotel recently. In presence of HT Imam and Gowhar Rizvi, Advisers to Prime Minister, Dr Atiur Rahman, Governor, Bangladesh Bank on behalf of Centre for NRBs handed over the award to Ahmed Kamal Khan Chowdhury, Managing Director of Prime Bank Limited. Chairman of Centre for NRBs SM Shekil Chowdhury was also present in the programme.

ICB Islamic Bank (ICBIBL) has recently launched the Western Union Remittance Service as a sub-agent in association with Trust Bank Ltd. Muhammad Shafiq Bin Abdullah, MD & CEO of ICB Islamic Bank and Ishtiaque Ahmed Chowdhury, MD & CEO of Trust Bank signed the deal on behalf of their respective organisations.

Speakers at a discussion have urged the branch level bankers to put in their best efforts to resist money laundering and other malpractices in banks for the sake of uprooting various social crimes associated with those, reports BSS. Terming the border-belt districts like Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj as crime-prone zone, they said bankers must remain sincere and alert so that money laundering and financing of terrorism could be reduced to a great extent.
They were addressing the inaugural session of a three-day training course titled “Prevention of Money Laundering and Malpractices in Banks” for the branch level bank officials of Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB) at its training institute in Rajshahi city yesterday. The main focus of the course was to disseminate updated knowledge and strategies to prevent malpractices associated with money laundering. A total of 35 bankers ranking from officers to principal officers is participating in the training workshop.
Officers in all 378 branches of the 16 districts under Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions will be brought under the training programme in phases.
RAKUB Deputy Managing Director Abdul Khaleque Khan, addressed the session as the chief guest with institute Principal Mozammel Haque in the chair.
Senior faculty member Taleb Ali and faculty members Mobinur Rashid Sarker, Ronojit Kumar Sen and SM Ahsan Ullah are conducting the course.
As the largest development partner in the agricultural sector of the northwest Bangladesh, RAKUB plays a vital role to earn economic emancipation and free the nation from poverty and hunger through boosting credit-flow to the potential agricultural fields, the speakers mentioned.
They asked the participants to discharge their duties with utmost sincerity and honesty to brighten the image of the bank.
The speakers emphasized the importance of due diligence and proper ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) guidelines and advised everyone to remain fully compliant with money laundering prevention (MLP) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT) rules and regulations.
Khaleque Khan advised the officials to be more cautious and proactive in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing, as well as complying with all other applicable regulations regarding the issue to protect and enhance the image of RAKUB as a compliant bank.
The speakers said the free flow of illegal money always creates a deviant situation in addition to the spread of various social crimes in the society.
So, it is high time that bankers should efficiently handle situations arising due to money laundering, as the present government as well as the Central Bank is giving highest priority in this regard, they added.