The banking sector in Bangladesh witnessed a sharp 56% rise in suspicious transactions and activity reports between July last year and May this year.
The Bangladesh Bank shared the information on Tuesday at a press conference held to release the annual report of the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU).
According to the BFIU, a total of 27,130 suspicious transactions and activity reports were filed from July to May of FY2024-25, compared to 17,345 during the entire FY2023-24.
This could mean that suspicious transactions and activities rose after the Awami League government was toppled on 5 August last year in the face of a student-led mass uprising, following nationwide protests by students throughout July.
The BFIU also noted that suspicious reports in FY24 were up 22.96% from the previous fiscal year.
Bangladesh Bank Governor Ahsan H Mansur attended the briefing, which was presided over by Head of BFIU AFM Shahinul Islam.
Shahinul said the rise in suspicious transaction reports is largely due to increased awareness and capacity among reporting agencies, as well as BFIU's proactive monitoring. He also noted a year-on-year increase in cash transaction reports.
During FY24, BFIU shared 114 financial intelligence reports with various investigative agencies and exchanged 1,220 information requests, which is 13.91% higher than the previous year.
At the event, it was revealed that to recover laundered money, the BFIU is working in coordination with domestic and international agencies. Consultations and technical assistance have already been initiated with the World Bank, USDOJ, IACCC, and ICAR.
BFIU Director Muhammad Anisur Rahman presented the key highlights of the annual report through a PowerPoint presentation during the session.
Due to strengthened efforts to curb money laundering and terrorist financing, Bangladesh improved its position by 13 spots in the Basel Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Index 2024, now ranking 59th globally – a sign of the country's progress in combating illicit financial flows.
