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  Largest Ever Scam in

Bangladesh

 The Sonali Bank is not only the largest nationalised

bank in Bangladesh, but also the biggest commercial

bank in this sector having the responsibility to

perform the treasury functionof the central bank in

places, where Bangladesh Bank does not have its

branches. Since the liberation of the country, Sonali

Bank has been functioning with full condence of the

people and the nation as a whole. The Hallmark scam

has not only thrown the Sonali Bank in a 'black hole',but also ruined the trust and condence of the people

in the entire banking sector.

 The vivid and true picture of the dirty game has not

yet been unearthed. The amount that has been taken

away by Hallmark has not been correctly mentioned.

 The amount diers from one media house to another.

!ierent sums of amount have been mentioned and

published in dierent news papers. "et us talk here

about the small gure of about tk #$%&crore that hasbeen disbursed alone in the name of Hallmark by

Sonali Bank, uposhi Bangla branch.

 The Hallmark episode has been the 'talk of the

country' spanning the last couple of weeks, and

reports about the scam are being published in the

national dailies almost daily. But surprisingly, the

modus operandi of the disbursement of this large amount of loan has not yetbeen disclosed in the media in detail. (lthough the mode of disbursement

has not been clearly brought to the people, the "ocal Bill )urchased facility

against fake "etters of *redit has been mentioned in many newspapers. +o

matter in which way the disbursement has been made, the facts remain that

the bank committed gross irregularities. The responsible person or the group

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of persons should be taken under the purview of laws as applicable to such

criminal oences.

 The scam has given some hints about what the government and policyadvisors should do to erase sullying marks in strategic nancial institutions

like nationalised and private banks,stocks echange and -"-. urther

incidents of any ma/or malfeasance in these sectors may add to agitated

minds of the people.

0f there is any, given by the Hallmark 1roup and initiate legal actions against

the schemers. Better promote micro2nance encouraging the small

entrepreneurs and traders with easy provision of loan repayment. They will

not apply for big amount of loan. 0t is really ama3ing something like believe it

or not that a big businessman received some thousand crore of loan from thestate2owned bank. The Bangladesh Bank must discourage lending large

loans from public and private sector banks. 0t is advisable that the

Bangladesh Bank start investigating all large loans etended by the S*Bs

during last three and a half years.' 0t is not that the rot is there alone in S*Bs.

 The private banks are not immune to it, particularly when a section of

directors consider the banks as their efdoms'.

(nti2corruption commission 4(**5 may well go ahead with its mission. But

there is popular skepticism about the role of (**. 0s it really an

independent6 0t must assert its authority investigating any case of corruptione7ciently. The (nti2*orruption *ommission8s investigations are ongoing and

court cases will be held this year. )erhaps more importantly, banking

eperts hope that the incident will bring about much needed reforms in the

banking sector.