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The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved filing a case against former prime minister’s adviser and former IFIC Bank chairman Salman F Rahman and 24 others over alleged embezzlement and money laundering involving loans issued in the name of a non-existent company.
According to ACC documents, the case concerns loans approved and disbursed to Skymark International Ltd without adequate collateral. A substantial portion of the funds was allegedly withdrawn without ensuring their proper use. The ACC said its investigation found prima facie evidence supporting the allegations.
The accused include Salman F Rahman, his son and former IFIC Bank vice-chairman Ahmed Shayan Fazlur Rahman, several former and current bank officials, and people associated with Skymark International.
The ACC said it also investigated allegations against Salman and Shayan involving the approval, disbursement and withdrawal of Tk7,129.30 crore in unsecured loans for 14 companies without properly assessing their eligibility, along with alleged embezzlement and money laundering.
In the Skymark case, an overdraft facility of Tk90 crore was approved on August 23, 2022. The limit was raised to Tk145 crore on January 10, 2023, and later increased to Tk545 crore on June 25, 2024, despite a proposed mortgage of 650 decimals of land not being completed, according to the ACC.
Of the Tk545 crore approved in three phases, Tk538.16 crore was allegedly disbursed and withdrawn in cash and through various transfers. Including interest and other charges, the outstanding overdraft stood at Tk604.69 crore as of July 23, 2026, which the ACC identified as the bank’s financial loss.
The ACC alleged that required due diligence was not conducted before approving the loans, including inspections of the company’s business premises and warehouse, verification of the directors’ identities and KYC information, assessment of business experience and financial capacity, and scrutiny of audited financial statements, tax payments and the stated purpose of the loans.
The commission further alleged that funds were withdrawn, transferred and converted in ways intended to conceal their nature, source and destination, amounting to money laundering.
The proposed case names former IFIC Bank directors Sudhanshu Shekhar Biswas, Shah Manzurul Haque, A R M Nazmus Sakib, Kamrun Nahar Ahmed, Md Golam Mostafa, Md Zafar Iqbal and Rabeya Jamali, among others.
The list also includes several former senior bank officials, including former deputy managing directors, credit committee members, the former managing director, heads of treasury and credit administration, and other officials involved in the loan approval and disbursement process.
The ACC has recommended filing the case under Sections 409, 420 and 109 of the Penal Code, Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, and Section 4(2) of the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012.
