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The remaining 92.5 percent is to be repaid within two years at 10 percent simple interest.

The provision has drawn criticism from economists and policy experts, who say it risks rewarding those linked to past financial mismanagement rather than ensuring accountability.

Against this backdrop, five sponsor shareholders and former directors of SIBL submitted an application to the BB last month seeking to regain control of the bank.

BB Spokesperson Khan said the application is currently under review but indicated that the demands are unlikely to be accepted.

APPLICANTS SAY APPLICATION MADE UNDER NEW LAW

The applicants are led by Maj (Retd) Md Rezaul Haque, former chairman and sponsor shareholder of SIBL.

Maj (Retd) Haque, who chaired the board until October 30, 2017, was joined by sponsor shareholders Hakim Md Yousuf Harun Bhuiyan, managing director and chief mutawalli of Hamdard Laboratories Waqf, and Sultan Mahmood Chowdhury.

The other applicants are former shareholder director Afia Begum and shareholder Md Zabedul Alam Chowdhury.

Maj (Retd) Haque is currently suffering from age-related health complications and unable to move around properly.

Following the fall of the Awami League-led government in August 2024, the central bank dissolved the board, which had been heavily influenced by controversial conglomerate S Alam Group, and formed a new one that included Maj (Retd) Haque as a director.

However, he was absent from most meetings due to his health condition.

Maksuda Begum, an independent director appointed by the BB after the political changeover, said Maj (Retd) Haque attended meetings occasionally but was unable to stay for long due to illness.

Md Zabedul Alam Chowdhury, a former shareholder and one of the applicants to reclaim the bank, said they had applied in line with regulations.

“We have applied according to the rules. We will fulfil all the conditions. If we get the bank back, we will bring in new investors,” he told The Daily Star.

He added that the bank would operate more effectively if the application were approved.

IRREGULARITIES LED TO THE MERGER

The five banks were brought under the merger process after forensic audits following the political changeover in 2024 found extensive loan irregularities and financial mismanagement.

The lenders faced acute liquidity shortages and were unable to repay depositors, prompting emergency intervention by the interim government.

The banks had been controlled by politically connected groups.

EXIM Bank was previously under Nazrul Islam Mazumder, former chairman of the Bangladesh Association of Banks, while the other four were linked to family members of Mohammed Saiful Alam, chairman of S Alam Group.

Allegations of large-scale irregularities and fund embezzlement during the previous government led to a sharp deterioration in their financial health.

As of September 2024, the combined outstanding loans of those five banks stood at Tk 1,92,787 crore, while total deposits were Tk 1,58,918 crore, according to BB data.