After Sheikh Hasina’s family and 10 industrial groups, eight international law firms are now searching abroad for the assets of 42 firms that each have more than 2 billion taka (200 crore) in defaulted loans. Alongside identifying the assets, steps have been taken to seize or attach them through legal process and bring the money back into the country.
Based on information from the banks concerned, the firms are identifying the location, type and amount of the overseas assets of the defaulting borrowers, and trying to recover them by taking the steps required under the relevant countries’ laws.
The firms engaged in this work include Grant Thornton; RI Consortium; Baker McKenzie and PwC; DLA Piper and Kroll; EY and Dentons; Rahman Ravelli and Interpath; BCG and HHR; and Animus Associates.
The foreign law firms will take no advance fee or cost, it has been learnt. If they can identify and recover overseas assets, they will receive a fixed share of the recovered money as their fee — that is, they will work on a “no win, no pay” basis.
The countries where laundered money or assets are initially thought most likely to be held include the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Singapore, Belgium, New Zealand, Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia.
Based on information from the banks, the foreign firms are identifying the location, nature and amount of assets held abroad in the names of the individuals or firms concerned, after which the necessary legal steps are being taken under the relevant countries’ laws.
If any asset can be identified and seized or attached through legal process, the money obtained from later selling or disposing of it will be brought into the country and used to repay the relevant bank’s dues.
Earlier, in the first phase, efforts were taken to recover money laundered by Sheikh Hasina’s family and 10 groups. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), the police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the relevant customs unit and the relevant income-tax unit are working on this, while the banks are also taking help from foreign law firms to recover defaulted loans.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report