Depositors of five troubled Islamic banks undergoing a merger process will receive refunds of their money, with customers allowed to withdraw up to Tk200,000 starting next Monday. The funds can be withdrawn from the respective branches of the banks and will be paid from the Deposit Insurance Fund, according to Bangladesh Bank sources.
The banks under the merger process are First Security Islami Bank, Global Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank, EXIM Bank and Union Bank. Final approval has already been granted for the formation of Sammilito Islami Bank PLC, which will acquire the five distressed Islamic banks.
According to the central bank official, customers who hold multiple accounts within the same bank, they will be allowed to withdraw from only one account. However, if a customer has accounts with all five banks, they will be eligible to withdraw funds from each bank account separately.
Central bank sources said depositors with balances exceeding Tk200,000 will be able to withdraw their money in phases after the scheme is announced. After withdrawing the initial Tk200,000, they will be allowed to withdraw Tk100,000 every three months, for a maximum period of up to two years.
This provision has been relaxed for depositors aged over 60 and for customers suffering from cancer, who will be allowed to withdraw any amount as needed. The core objective of the scheme is to address the crisis of depositor confidence and gradually restore stability to the banking sector.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Bank has ordered the share value of the five Islamic banks under the merger process to be written down to zero. The directive has been issued under the Bank Resolution Ordinance, as the actual value of the banks’ assets has turned negative.
According to Bangladesh Bank data, the five banks currently hold deposits of about Tk142,000 crore from roughly 7.5 million depositors. Against this, outstanding loans amount to Tk193,000 crore, a large portion of which has already become classified.
It has been learned that First Security Islami Bank has 22.02 lakh depositors with balances of up to Tk100,000, holding deposits worth Tk2,502 crore. The number of depositors with balances between Tk100,001 and Tk200,000 stands at 149,456, with deposits totalling Tk2,201 crore.
At EXIM Bank, 12.82 lakh depositors have balances of up to Tk100,000, with deposits of Tk1,202 crore, while 86,158 depositors hold between Tk100,001 and Tk200,000, with deposits amounting to Tk1,253 crore.
At Social Islami Bank, 24.32 lakh depositors have balances of up to Tk100,000, with deposits of Tk1,511 crore, while 86,406 depositors hold between Tk100,001 and Tk200,000, with deposits of Tk2,255 crore.
Union Bank has 451,460 depositors with balances of up to Tk100,000, holding deposits of Tk707 crore, while 36,912 depositors fall within the Tk100,001 to Tk200,000 range, with deposits of Tk557 crore. At Global Islami Bank, 455,421 depositors have balances of up to Tk100,000, with deposits of Tk 631 crore, while 28,644 depositors hold between Tk100,001 and Tk200,000, with deposits amounting to Tk428 crore.
