B Mirror Report: Agent banking in Bangladesh is facing growing scrutiny over deposit security following a series of alleged financial fraud cases involving customers’ savings worth crores of taka in several districts.
Recent incidents in Bagerhat, Cox’s Bazar, Mymensingh and Gaibandha have raised concerns about banks’ monitoring systems and the safety of deposits handled through agent banking outlets. In another case in Naogaon, six people were arrested over an alleged staged robbery involving Tk 34 lakh from an Islamic Bank agent banking outlet.
The latest incident involves a Dutch-Bangla Bank agent banking outlet at Taphalbari Bazar in Sharankhola, Bagerhat, where outlet operator Md Omar Faruk Raju has allegedly misappropriated around Tk 5 crore.
The outlet has remained closed since September 28, and Raju is reportedly missing. Customers alleged that he collected deposits using fake receipts and fraudulent confirmation messages sent to their mobile phones. Around 150 customers are believed to have deposited money through the outlet.
After customers reported the matter to the bank’s Bagerhat district branch, officials reportedly found that most of the receipts were fraudulent.
In Cox’s Bazar’s Palongkhali area of Ukhiya, officials of an Al-Arafah Islami Bank agent banking outlet have been accused of fleeing with at least Tk 10 crore. Customers filed a case after the officials disappeared on August 17. Police have arrested agent owner Hakim Uddin and cashier Tahsin Islam in connection with the incident.
In Nandail, Mymensingh, customers alleged that an Agrani Bank agent outlet continued conducting transactions despite being closed in June 2025. According to affected customers, money and savings certificates were collected using fake receipts, resulting in losses amounting to crores of taka.
Meanwhile, two employees of an Islami Bank agent banking outlet in Dhaperhat, Gaibandha, have been accused of embezzling deposits belonging to 46 customers. The victims alleged that they were given fake deposit receipts and fixed deposit receipt (FDR) cheques.
Bank authorities said the allegations would be investigated and steps were being taken to refund the affected customers.
In Naogaon’s Raninagar, police arrested six people, including bank officials and employees, over an alleged robbery involving Tk 34 lakh from an Islami Bank agent banking outlet. Preliminary police investigations suggested that three bank officials and employees had staged the robbery to misappropriate customers’ money.
The successive incidents have raised questions about the effectiveness of banks’ supervision of agent banking outlets and the safeguards in place to protect depositors’ money, particularly in remote areas where agent banking plays a vital role in providing financial services.
