Desk Report,
Debate over interest waiver, Commerce Bank MD resigns
Bangladesh Commerce Bank’s Managing Director (MD) Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain has resigned amid the controversy surrounding the decision to waive interest of Tk 48 crore.
Debate over interest waiver, Commerce Bank MD resigns
According to bank sources, some board members behaved disrespectfully with Mosharraf Hossain at the board meeting last Tuesday. He submitted his resignation the next day.
Suruj Mia Spinning Mills, a defaulter of the bank, has a loan of about Tk 88 crore. In contrast, the bank’s board recently approved the interest waiver of Tk 48 crore; this approval has been sent to Bangladesh Bank for no objection. Sources said that the current chairman of the executive committee of Commerce Bank, Md. Mohsin Mia, has served as an advisor to Suruj Mia Spinning in the past. Along with board chairman Ataur Rahman, he also played an active role in the interest waiver. But the managing director objected to it.
The source said that pressure was exerted on the managing director to quickly bring the no objection certificate from Bangladesh Bank. When he did not agree, he was threatened with removal in the meeting. He resigned the next day.
The bank’s chairman Ataur Rahman and executive committee chairman Md. Mohsin Miah were called several times on their mobile phones to inquire about the matter, but they could not be reached.
According to Bangladesh Bank sources, Bangladesh Bank formed a new board of directors of the bank after the Awami League government fell in the mass uprising of students and the public on August 5.
Mosharraf Hossain joined Bangladesh Commerce Bank as the managing director for a three-year term on January 16 this year. Before that, he was the MD of Islamic Finance and Investment. He joined the banking profession in 1987 as a supervisory officer at Uttara Bank.
