Bangladesh Bank has officially dissolved the board of ICB Islamic Bank.
Mazibur Rahman, an executive director of Bangladesh Bank, has been appointed as both the managing director and a member of the bank’s board of directors.
Confirming the development to bdnews24.com, Arif Hossain Khan, spokesperson and executive director of the central bank, stated that Mazibur had already been serving as the managing director before the dissolution of the board.
“In the interest of depositors and to ensure proper governance, the central bank has entrusted Mazibur Rahman with the responsibility of both managing director and board director,” Arif said.
The decision to dissolve the bank’s board was made on Wednesday.
Arif further highlighted that severe irregularities were uncovered in the management of ICB Islamic Bank. Following an investigation, Bangladesh Bank compiled a report detailing these issues, including a significant shortfall in capital and provisioning.
“The bank has also been facing investment difficulties, suffering substantial losses due to prolonged financial irregularities and money laundering,” he added.
In December 2024, the central bank had already taken action by replacing the managing director. Mazibur Rahman was appointed in place of Muhammad Shafiq Bin Abdullah, who faced allegations of corruption and mismanagement.
During the Annual Banking Conference on Wednesday, Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur reiterated the bank’s stance on governance reforms, stating, “The central bank will intervene if a bank’s board fails to function properly. This is an ongoing process. Board restructuring is not yet complete. We have already reconstituted the boards of 11 banks in the first phase, and two more banks had their boards reshuffled a few weeks ago.”
ICB Islamic Bank first started operations in Bangladesh in 1987 as Al-Baraka Bank but was classified as a “troubled bank” by 1994.
In response to rising defaults, Bangladesh Bank introduced a system of appointing supervisors to oversee struggling banks.
In 2004, the bank was rebranded as Oriental Bank and began operating as a commercial entity. However, after uncovering large-scale financial irregularities, the central bank dissolved Oriental Bank’s board in June 2006.
By 2008, the bank was rebranded once again under its current name, ICB Islamic Bank.
