Sonali Bank Chairman Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury resigned on Monday morning, citing personal reasons, in a move that comes against the backdrop of mounting internal and political pressure.
He submitted his resignation after arriving at the bank’s head office as usual, triggering fresh questions about governance strains inside the state-owned lender.
The development did not occur in isolation. Earlier in the day, Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IRDA) Chairman M Aslam Alam stepped down, while General Insurance Corporation Chairman Mohammad Zainul Bari also resigned in the morning, signalling an unusual cluster of high-level exits across key financial institutions.
The latest shake-up also comes days after a dramatic change at the central bank. On 25 February, Ahsan H Mansur’s appointment as Bangladesh Bank governor was cancelled and businessman Md Mostaqur Rahman was installed in his place following protests at the central bank demanding Mansur’s resignation.
Against this fluid backdrop, sources at Sonali Bank said pressure on the chairman had been building since the February national election, particularly from groups operating under the banner of Zia Parishad that sought transfers of their preferred officials to the head office and key Dhaka branches.
Tensions escalated further after the bank on 24 February transferred seven officials outside Dhaka who were accused of mobilising pressure through organised protests. Those moved included Sonali Bank Zia Parishad General Secretary SM Abul Bashar, Sonali Bank Jatiyatabadi Bankers Parishad President Md Sohel Mahbub and General Secretary Md Sohel Raihan.
According to sources, following the transfers, BNP-aligned leaders within the bank reportedly approached the party’s top leadership, arguing they had long been deprived during the previous Awami League tenure and were again being sidelined despite a change in government.
In such circumstances, pressure on Chairman Muslim Chowdhury to step down was said to have intensified.
Officials familiar with the matter said the Financial Institutions Division (FID) of the finance ministry was also not extending full cooperation to him.
When contacted, however, Muslim Chowdhury maintained that he had resigned for personal reasons.
Muslim Chowdhury was appointed chairman of Sonali Bank’s board on August 28 after the Awami League government fell on August 5 in a mass student-led uprising.
A career civil servant, he joined the Bangladesh Civil Service audit and accounts cadre in 1984 and later served as Comptroller General of Accounts, Comptroller General Defence Finance and in key positions at the finance division, including deputy secretary, joint secretary and additional secretary.
During his tenure, bank insiders say, he had been running the lender with professional discipline while the institution continued efforts to rebuild credibility.
The bank’s latest financial indicators reflect both progress and persistent stress. By the end of 2025, Sonali Bank’s deposits stood at Tk 1,79,879 crore, while total loans reached Tk 1,04,723 crore, according to internal financial reviews.
Notably, the lender’s strongest performance last year came in operating profit, which rose to Tk 8,017 crore in 2025. Even so, recovery of large exposures to several major groups including Hallmark, Beximco, Thermex and Orion remains weak, keeping non-performing loans elevated despite the bank’s improved profitability.
Even amid these challenges, the state-owned lender has been trying to strengthen its financial base and expand technology use to improve transparency and reach a wider customer base.
