Bangladesh Bank has intensified efforts to recover funds laundered abroad under the guise of loans from five merged banks. Governor Mostakur Rahman instructed administrators of these banks to finalize non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with foreign legal support firms within April. The directive was issued during a meeting at the governor’s office on Thursday. The banks include Social Islami Bank, First Security Islami Bank, Global Islami Bank, Union Bank, and Exim Bank.

According to the report, the first four banks were under the control of S Alam Group, which allegedly withdrew Tk 225,000 crore in loans. Exim Bank was operated under NASA Group, which has loans totaling Tk 9,214 crore. Ten banks have already signed 36 NDAs to recover funds laundered by six major industrial groups, including S Alam, Aramit, Sikder, Beximco, Orion, and NASA groups. Among them, S Alam Group alone is linked to ten NDAs, three of which have been completed.

The governor emphasized expediting legal processes to recover the laundered assets and restore the financial health of the affected banks.