B Mirror Report: Islami Bank’s other prominent borrowers include Nassa Group, Noman Group, Deshbandhu Group, Jamuna Tyre, GMS Group, Murad Enterprise, AJ Trade International, Delta Group, Bashundhara Multifood Group, and Mahmud Denims Limited.

Islami Bank has lent around Tk 10,000 crore to five banks that are currently in the process of merging. The bank has yet to recover this money. A senior official of Islami Bank said the central bank has assured them that instead of cash repayment, they will receive shares of the new merged bank. The official also added that Janata Bank owes Tk 1,000 crore and has failed to repay it.

Before the political change, Islami Bank was suffering from a liquidity crisis and also had a shortfall in its settlement account at the central bank. Officials said that since then, the cash position has stabilized, and depositors can now withdraw funds without any difficulty, although the huge volume of defaulted loans remains a serious concern.

A top official of Islami Bank said the bank’s liquidity is currently “very strong.” He said the bank is intensifying its loan recovery efforts through legal measures and other means. The bank has filed 488 cases against defaulters. These include 34 cases involving Tk 66,507 crore in the money loan court, 377 criminal cases, 1,881 cases involving Tk 19,996 crore, and 10 cases involving Tk 28,064 crore related to stock settlement. He said they are prioritizing cash recovery while allowing genuine businesses to reschedule their loans.

The official said, “Our target is to reduce the volume of defaulted loans from 50 percent to 35 percent.” He added that the recovery process is slow because business activities have remained subdued ahead of the national elections in February. He said, “Additionally, we are engaging international legal firms to recover foreign assets. Our primary focus now is recovery.”

In 2023, Islami Bank made a net profit of Tk 635 crore, the highest in four years. The following year, net profit sharply dropped to Tk 109 crore. During January–September of this year, the bank posted a profit of Tk 99 crore, down from Tk 267 crore during the same period last year.

Islami Bank has dismissed 4,685 employees, who were reportedly recruited by S. Alam Group without following due procedure. Since then, the bank has hired 2,571 new employees. An internal audit found that more than 10,000 of the bank’s 21,000 employees were recruited after the 2017 change in control. According to bank records, between 2017 and 2024, 7,224 people were recruited from Chattogram, of whom more than 4,500 were residents of Patiya, the home upazila of S. Alam Group chairman Saiful Alam.