MD MEHEDI HASAN

The newly enacted Bank Resolution Act, 2026, paves the way for former owners to regain control of merging banks under relatively easy terms, a move seen as a reversal of the interim government’s banking reform.

Under the act, former directors or owners of banks, merging or listed for mergers, can pay 7.5 percent upfront of the amount injected by the government or the Bangladesh Bank to reclaim the banks. The remaining 92.5 percent is to be repaid within two years at 10 percent simple interest.

As part of its reform drive, in May 2025, the interim administration had approved the Bank Resolution Ordinance, 2025, to merge five troubled Shariah-based private banks into a state-run entity titled Sommilito Islami Bank.

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