Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC has terminated 200 officers and placed 4,771 others on special duty after they refused to take part in a qualification test designed to verify their recruitment.
The move comes after years of allegations that thousands of staff had been hired through irregular processes under the influence of S Alam Group, which took control of the country鈥檚 largest Shariah-based lender in 2017.
On September 27, the bank arranged a competency assessment for 5,385 officers through the University of Dhaka鈥檚 Institute of Business Administration.
Only 414 attended, while the rest boycotted the test.
Islami Bank additional managing director M Kamal Uddin Jashim said the move was intended to give officers an opportunity to secure their positions through a transparent process.
鈥榃e wanted them to retain their jobs through an assessment, but most of them declined. Many of these officers repeatedly violated the bank鈥檚 code of conduct and professionalism, leaving us with no choice but to act,鈥� he told 抖阴精品.
Officials said that after S Alam鈥檚 takeover, 7,224 people were recruited from Chattogram, more than 4,500 of them from Potiya, the hometown of S Alam Group chairman Saiful Alam. Recruitment bypassed competitive job exams and public advertisements, with r茅sum茅s collected through drop boxes at Alam鈥檚 residence and office.
Even relatives of his household workers reportedly secured officer posts at the bank.
Allegations of bribery and fake academic credentials are widespread, with nearly 2,500 officers submitting unverifiable certificates from private universities in Chattogram, the officers revealed.
Investigations have already uncovered forged certificates among several staff, and action has been taken in some cases, they said.
The bank officers said the assessment was necessary to restore internal discipline.
Officials alleged that some of the officers threatened colleagues to prevent them from sitting the exam and later tried to incite unrest at the bank鈥檚 Potiya branch.
Those who skipped the test have been barred from operational duties until further notice. In its official statement, Islami Bank said the test was fully lawful.
It explained that a group of officers had filed a writ petition against the exam, but the High Court directed Bangladesh Bank to settle the issue.
The central bank later ruled that Islami Bank, as a privately owned institution, had the authority to assess and retain staff in line with national laws.
This initiative was essential to protect the bank from reputational damage caused by unqualified staff appointed in recent years, it added.
With around 21,000 staff, Islami Bank is the country鈥檚 largest Shariah-based lender.
But under S Alam Group鈥檚 control, the bank had reportedly allowed the withdrawal of around Tk 1 lakh crore, by named entities and anonymously, driving it to the brink of collapse.
Bank insiders said many of the officers recruited during this period actively facilitated such irregularities.
On August 21, 2024, Bangladesh Bank dissolved Islami Bank鈥檚 board to free it from S Alam Group鈥檚 influence and appointed independent directors on an interim basis.