Receiver to 'keep Beximco afloat', not to stall it, says BB governor

The company will collapse tomorrow if we stop funding. But saving it is a big challenge, he says

Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur has said the appointment of a custodian, officially termed as a receiver, at troubled Beximco Group aims to set the entities associated with the conglomerate in motion.

Beximco, the country’s leading business conglomerate, is owned by Salman F Rahman, the private industries and investment advisor to deposed former premier Sheikh Hasina.

The central bank approved the appointment of a supervisor at one of the country's largest industrial groups at a board meeting on Sunday.

However, the governor spoke on the issue at an event in Dhaka on Monday.

“Assigning a custodian does not mean that Beximco has been 'deactivated'. The measure has been taken to keep Beximco 'active'. "

Speaking at the "Third Bangladesh Economic Conference: Inequality, Financial Crime, and Bangladesh’s Economic Recovery," organised by the Bangla language daily Bonik Barta at a Dhaka hotel, he said: “For several months, the government has been paying the wages and allowances of Beximco, which will not last at a long run.

“The receivership is intended to prevent the diversion of funds, ensuring export earnings reach Bangladesh and cover labour costs.”

Salman's residence in Dhaka's Gulshan was attacked on Aug 5, the day the Awami League government fell. The saboteurs looted valuables from the house and set it on fire, leaving it in an abandoned state.

Though a BBC report said that Salman had left for India with Hasina in a helicopter, the police said he was arrested on Aug 13.

Following the detention, he was shown arrested in several murder cases tied to the movement, removed from the board of IFIC Bank, and charged in 17 cases over laundering of Tk 10 billion. The bank accounts of Salman, his son, and daughter-in-law were frozen, a committee was also formed to investigate the conglomerate’s irregularities in the capital market.

Since the fall of the government, workers in Beximco Group's industrial enterprises have been protesting in phases for unpaid wages. Following the central bank’s approval of a special loan in this situation, the payment of arrears was reported in the media.

Later on Sept 5, the High Court issued a rule hearing a writ petition on installing a caretaker in Beximco Group and asked why the initiative would not be taken to this end.

Two months later on Sunday, Bangladesh Bank appointed its Executive Director Ruhul Amin as the receiver.

This is the first receiver appointment in any group of companies in the sub-continent.

Referring to the move to save the Beximco Group, the governor said: "The company will collapse tomorrow if we stop funding. But keeping it alive is challenging. We are trying to save the entities associated with the group."