B Mirror Report: A Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) investigation has uncovered alleged coordinated share manipulation involving City Insurance, with its share price surging nearly 364% in less than a year and a half, from Tk 28.10 on April 30, 2025, to Tk 130.20 on October 14, 2026.

The investigation identified suspected practices including serial trading, transactions between relatives’ accounts, transfers of shares without changes in beneficial ownership, and concentrated purchases within seconds to push up prices.

Two listed companies associated with Anwar Group Anwar Galvanizing and Bangladesh Finance—also came under scrutiny for alleged violations of securities regulations. Anwar Galvanizing reportedly traded shares during a restricted period, while Bangladesh Finance bought and sold substantial volumes without making the required prior disclosures.

According to the DSE investigation, Anwar Galvanizing’s account recorded the movement of hundreds of thousands of City Insurance shares during a period when trading restrictions were in effect. The transactions allegedly violated the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission’s (BSEC) Prohibition of Insider Trading Rules, 2022.

Bangladesh Finance, through its subsidiary Bangladesh Finance Securities, bought 2.03 million City Insurance shares and sold 2.14 million during the investigation period. Its total transactions amounted to 4.17 million shares, representing 5.86% of the shares traded during the period.

The investigation also found that five individuals and entities accounted for nearly half of the trading activity. Senior Trading, represented by Md Idris Ali, recorded total transactions of 17.03 million shares, equivalent to 23.89% of the trading volume under investigation. Nilfa Trading and Atahar Ishraq Shabab Chowdhury were also identified as major traders.

Senior Trading and Nilfa Trading attracted particular attention because investigators reportedly could not find offices at the addresses listed in their beneficiary owner (BO) accounts. The mobile phone numbers provided for contact were also found switched off, raising questions about their beneficial owners, trading instructions and sources of funds.

The DSE investigation found instances in which Senior Trading bought almost all shares traded during specific short periods, pushing prices higher. On December 1, 2025, it purchased all 8,765 shares traded in just 44 seconds, as the price rose from Tk 76.70 to Tk 77.90. The investigation estimated that Senior Trading made Tk 19.7 million in profit during the period, with an additional unrealised gain of Tk 163.4 million on its remaining portfolio at the end of December.

Similar trading patterns were identified in Nilfa Trading’s transactions. Its remaining City Insurance shares carried an unrealised gain of around Tk 80 million at the end of December, according to the report.

Investigators also identified transactions among multiple accounts belonging to the same individual and between relatives. In some cases, shares changed accounts without any change in beneficial ownership. The DSE flagged these transactions for potential violations of the Securities and Exchange Ordinance, 1969.

Brokerage activities also came under scrutiny. The investigation identified transactions between two clients through opposing orders executed from the same trading workstation at SBAC Bank Investment. The brokerage firm said the transactions were made on separate clients’ instructions without any intention to manipulate the market. However, the DSE raised concerns over the failure to report suspicious trading activities.

Anwar Galvanizing Company Secretary Touhidul Islam denied any connection between Anwar Group and Senior Trading or Nilfa Trading. However, he did not directly respond to questions about the alleged failure to make the required corporate disclosures before trading City Insurance shares.

BSEC spokesperson and Executive Director Mohammad Abul Kalam said the commission had already ordered a full investigation into trading in City Insurance shares. He said legal action would be taken against those concerned if evidence of irregularities emerged.