STAR BUSINESS REPORT

Economist Debapriya Bhattacharya yesterday urged the government to explain the intention behind recent revisions to the Bank Resolution Act, which now allow former owners to regain control of five Islamic banks being merged amid a severe liquidity crisis due to past irregularities.

At a session of the annual economists’ conference at BRAC Centre Inn in Dhaka, he said political authorities must set out their position in parliament and issue a clear statement explaining their intent.

Earlier this month, the House passed the revised Bank Resolution Act 2026, paving the way for former owners of the merging banks to reclaim control under relatively easy terms. The move has been widely viewed as a reversal of the interim government’s banking reform drive.

Under the law, former directors or owners can reclaim control by paying 7.5 percent of the funds injected by the government or the Bangladesh Bank upfront. The remaining 92.5 percent is to be paid within two years at 10 percent simple interest.

“I have no problem with the policy itself, but I want clarity,” Debapriya said at the conference organised by the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (Sanem).

He said, “Even the central bank governor has not given a statement on this. So, instead of relying on our own interpretations, the authorities must speak.”

Debapriya, convenor of the Citizen’s Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh, said, “I am worried. I have already said over the past couple of days that we need a political statement on this issue. We need a discussion in parliament.”

“What we are doing now, what you, I, and others are saying, is based on our goodwill, but it is still just interpretation,” he said.

“I believe in political interpretation backed by commitment. That commitment should ensure that past problems or actors do not return. And this issue is not limited to today; it will affect the media tomorrow, and then oil and LNG imports the day after. It extends beyond banking; it affects the entire economy,” he further said.

“We have seen such patterns before. That is why I am looking for a clear political explanation, and wondering why the political leadership is silent,” added Debapriya, also a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).