The Money Loan Court on Monday ordered the attachment of Exim Bank鈥檚 Gulshan head office building in a case filed by Bank Asia over unpaid loans.
Exim Bank borrowed Tk 400 crore from Bank Asia last year amid a severe liquidity crisis. Of that amount, it failed to repay Tk 389 crore.
As the loan was unsecured 鈥� with no collateral pledged 鈥� Bank Asia faced significant difficulty recovering the money.
To reclaim the funds, Bank Asia filed a lawsuit with the Money Loan Court.
In response, Judge Mujahidur Rahman of Dhaka鈥檚 Money Loan Court-5 issued the attachment order on Monday.
The bank will remain operational, but the property will be attached, officials said.
Officials said Bangladesh Bank is currently considering merging Exim Bank with another bank due to its deteriorating financial health.
They expressed concern that if the bank is liquidated or merged without securing asset recovery, it may become nearly impossible for Bank Asia to retrieve the outstanding loan.
The court also issued a show cause notice to Exim Bank, asking it to explain within 15 days why its scheduled assets should not be confiscated.
Until then, the assets identified in Bank Asia鈥檚 petition will remain under court attachment temporarily.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for August 21, 2025.
Exim Bank鈥檚 loan defaults have crossed 30 per cent of its Tk聽52,500 crore loan portfolio, driven by massive irregularities and reciprocal lending among bank directors.
The bank disbursed around Tk聽8,500 crore to companies linked with directors of other banks, including Tk聽4,100 crore to S Alam Group, owned by Mohammed Saiful Alam of First Security Islami Bank.
In return, First Security lent Tk 734 crore to Nassa Group, owned by former Exim Bank chairman Nazrul Islam Mazumder, who also took loans from Islami Bank and others.
Nassa owed Islami Bank Tk聽651 crore, SIBL Tk 651 crore, IFIC Tk 637 crore, and National Bank Tk 1,632 crore.
Exim Bank also lent Tk 801 crore to firms tied to the then SIBL chairman Belal Ahmed, and Tk 2,671 crore to a Sikder Group concern.
Mazumder led the Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB) for nearly 17 years during the Awami League-led government since 2008.
Bangladesh Bank removed Mazumder and others from the board of Exim Bank on August 29, after the fall of the AL-led government. He was arrested later that night.
