Under the ousted Awami League government, Meghna Bank was controlled by Awami League treasurer and former minister Ashikur Rahman, and Midland Bank by Kazi Zafarullah, an influential member of the party’s presidium. After the government fell, the boards of both banks changed. PRAN-RFL Group director Uzma Chowdhury became chair of Meghna Bank, and the group’s chairman and CEO Ahsan Khan Chowdhury took the top post at Midland Bank. The two are siblings. Since the change, default loans at both banks have risen further.
Uzma Chowdhury was one of Meghna Bank’s sponsors when it launched in 2013, and the bank was controlled from the start by Ashikur Rahman. Bangladesh Bank reconstituted its board last year, after which Uzma Chowdhury was elected chair.
Ahsan Khan Chowdhury was likewise a sponsor of Midland Bank at its founding in 2013. The bank was controlled by Kazi Zafarullah from the start, and most recently his wife, Nilufar Zafarullah, was chair. After the Awami League government fell on August 5, 2024, she began missing board meetings, and on March 20 last year, the board’s 165th meeting elected Ahsan Khan Chowdhury chair.
Sources say default loans have risen at both banks since they took charge. Uzma Chowdhury became chair of Meghna Bank on March 16, 2025, when its default loans stood at Tk 255 crore, or 3.78 percent of total loans. By the end of June this year they had risen to Tk 433 crore, 5.60 percent of total loans.
When called for comment, Uzma Chowdhury hung up after learning the caller was an Amar Desh reporter and did not answer later calls. Repeated calls to the bank’s managing director and CEO, Syed Mizanur Rahman, found the line busy.
Before Ahsan Khan Chowdhury became chair of Midland Bank, its default loans were Tk 239 crore, or 3.78 percent of total loans. By the end of June they had risen to Tk 412 crore, 5.67 percent of total loans. Neither he nor managing director Imtiaz U Ahmed answered phone calls.
Banking sources say it is the first time in Bangladesh that two siblings from the same family have chaired two scheduled commercial banks, and that default loans have always tended to rise at family-controlled banks, as seen before.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report