Customers of 5 banks under merger are not getting their savings back immediately

Staff Correspondent

Depositors of the country’s five banks under the merger are not getting their savings back immediately. They will have to wait a few more days to withdraw their money.

Bangladesh Bank has clearly stated that there is no possibility of paying the depositors of these banks within this year. A specific date has not been set yet. However, it is reported that the issue of allowing withdrawals up to a maximum of 2 lakh taka is under process.

The government had previously announced multiple times to refund depositors’ money. This time too, customers have expressed anger over not receiving the announced refund.

The Central Bank has confirmed that information circulating on social media recently that depositors of a merged bank will be able to withdraw money from December 29th (Monday) is ‘baseless and untrue’.

Bangladesh Bank spokesperson and executive director Arif Hossain Khan said that taking into account the needs of depositors of the five banks included in the merger, the issue of allowing withdrawals of up to Tk 2 lakh is being considered in principle. It will be launched soon, but no specific date or time has been finalized yet.

He also said, “The news that has been spread on social media and some media outlets about withdrawing money from December 29th is not correct. I request everyone not to be confused by this misleading information.”

In this situation, it is clear that depositors of the banks covered by the merger will not be able to withdraw their money within this year. There has been no official announcement yet on when this facility will be effective.

Account holders of these banks with deposits of more than 2 lakh taka will be able to withdraw a maximum of 2 lakh taka in the first phase. Later, they will be allowed to withdraw 1 lakh taka every three months for a maximum of two years.

This provision will be relaxed for depositors over 60 years of age and customers suffering from cancer. Although they are told that they will be able to withdraw money at any time and in any amount as needed, they are still skeptical about the government’s announcement.

Bangladesh Bank has given final approval to form ‘Sammilit Islami Bank PLC’ to acquire five Islamic banks that are in the process of merging. This bank will include First Security Islami Bank, Global Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank, Exim Bank and Union Bank.

As per the approval of Bangladesh Bank, the head office of the new bank has been set up at Sena Kalyan Bhaban in the capital. The paid-up capital of the bank has been set at Tk 35,000 crore. Of this, the government is providing Tk 20,000 crore and Tk 15,000 crore will come from the Deposit Insurance Fund. The authorized capital has been set at Tk 40,000 crore.

It is learnt that Bangladesh Bank has ordered the shares of five Islamic banks under merger to be nullified. According to central bank sources, the decision was taken in accordance with the Bank Resolution Ordinance as the real asset value of the banks is negative.

According to Bangladesh Bank, these banks currently have a total deposit of Tk 1.42 trillion from about 7.5 million depositors. On the other hand, the loan amount stands at Tk 1.93 trillion, a large part of which has become defaulted.

The number of depositors up to 1 lakh taka in First Security Islami Bank is 2,202,190. The total deposit in these accounts is 2,502 crore taka. The number of depositors from 1 lakh 1 to 2 lakh taka is 1,49,456, whose accounts have 2,201 crore taka.

The number of depositors up to 1 lakh taka in Exim Bank is 12 lakh 81 thousand 858 people and their deposits are 1 thousand 202 crore taka. The number of depositors from 1 lakh 1 to 2 lakh taka is 86 thousand 158 people, whose accounts have deposits of 1 thousand 253 crore taka.

The number of depositors up to 1 lakh taka in Social Islami Bank is 24 lakh 32 thousand 408 people. The total deposit in these accounts is 1 thousand 511 crore taka. The number of depositors from 1 lakh 1 to 2 lakh taka is 86 thousand 406 people and their deposit is 2 thousand 255 crore taka.

The number of depositors up to 1 lakh taka in Union Bank is 4 lakh 51 thousand 460, whose deposits are 707 crore taka. The number of depositors from 1 lakh 1 to 2 lakh taka is 36 thousand 912, and the deposits are 557 crore taka.

The number of depositors up to 1 lakh taka in Global Islami Bank is 4 lakh 55 thousand 421 people. There are 631 crore taka in these accounts. The number of depositors from 1 lakh 1 to 2 lakh taka is 28 thousand 644 people and their deposits are 428 crore taka.