Al-Arafah Islami Bank PLC has been reporting steady growth in deposits, investments and customer accounts over a period of stress and regulatory restructuring, with the lender attributing the resilience to sustained customer confidence.
The bank said trust remained central to its operational stability as it neither required liquidity support from Bangladesh Bank nor recorded any cheque dishonour incidents while several peers struggled to maintain uninterrupted services.
Deposits rose to Tk54,593 crore at the end of 2025 from Tk51,609 crore a year earlier, while investments increased to Tk50,456 crore from Tk48,889 crore.
Customer accounts expanded to 3.87 million from 3.64 million, reflecting an addition of more than 0.23 million accounts in one year.
The bank also said foreign trade operations remained stable despite internal volatility and sector-wide uncertainty.
The Shariah-compliant lender maintained uninterrupted customer services across all branches, even as broader governance reforms and liquidity strains weighed on parts of the banking sector.
Bangladesh Bank, at the beginning of the interim government, dissolved the boards of 12 banks under governance strengthening measures and placed them under enhanced supervision.
Regulatory action across the sector also included disciplinary measures against more than 600 employees at different levels, temporarily disrupting operations during 2025.
However, Bangladesh Bank and related audit reviews did not find evidence of large-scale financial misappropriation at Al-Arafah, allowing gradual operational stabilisation, according to the bank.
It secured an operating profit of Tk85 crore in the first quarter of 2026.
In the first four months of 2026, according to the bank, customer accounts increased by 0.18 million during the period, taking total deposit accounts to 4.05 million in April 2026.
Foreign trade transactions during the period stood at around Tk23,000 crore.
The bank said governance tightening and internal restructuring last year initially created operational pressure, but stabilisation of systems and strengthening customer trust later supported recovery momentum.
Meanwhile, operational infrastructure was upgraded through rollout of the Ababil NG core banking system, which the bank said improved speed, security and reliability across internet banking, mobile banking, ATM, EFTN, RTGS and NPSB channels.
Al-Arafah operates 226 branches, 89 sub-branches and 738 agent banking outlets across Bangladesh, covering 306 upazilas. It said 88 per cent of agent outlets are located in rural areas, while women account for 49 per cent of customers.
Agent banking deposits stood at Tk4,070 crore, with 0.15 million accounts added over the past 16 months.
Under its Al-Arafah Rural Development Programme (ARDP), the bank operates in 2,780 villages with more than 86,000 members, 72 per cent of whom are women. The programme added around 30,000 accounts in 16 months, taking total ARDP accounts to 0.41 million.
Deposits under the programme rose by about Tk200 crore to Tk750 crore, while investments reached Tk541 crore.
The bank said its integrated Shariah-compliant digital financial ecosystem links internet banking, Islamic wallet, Bangla QR, agent banking and ARDP operations, enabling cashless savings, donations, education and investment services across urban and rural segments.
Al-Arafah CEO Md Rafat Ullah Khan said rebuilding trust during a period of uncertainty required sustained discipline, governance reform and customer-focused execution.
“Uninterrupted services, absence of liquidity support dependence and expansion of outreach reflected our structural resilience and improving confidence in the institution,” he added.
