Staff Correspondent

Bangladesh Bank (BB) has dissolved the board of directors of the Social Islami Bank Limited (SIBL).

The central bank has also formed a new board for SIBL with the appointment of five independent directors at the Shariah-based lender, according to a letter issued by the central bank today.

Major (retd) Dr Md Rezaul Haque, the bank’s founding shareholder, has been appointed as the director of the new board.

The four independent directors are – Maksuda Begum, a former executive director of the Bangladesh Bank and; Dr M Sadiqul Islam, a professor at the Department of Finance at Dhaka University; Md Morshed Alam Khandkar, a former deputy managing director of Rupali Bank; and chartered accountant Md Anwar Hossain.

Since the Awami League government assumed power, SIBL has been under the control of the S Alam Group, a business conglomerate with a history of alleged irregularities and corruption.

S Alam Group is alleged to have engaged in irregularities and corrupt practices within SIBL, particularly in the areas of recruitment and loan disbursement.

Following the allegations, the Bangladesh Bank dissolved the existing board of directors, which was dominated by S Alam Group representatives, and appointed a new board to oversee the bank’s operations.