Crisis-stricken Padma Bank has committed to devising a plan to return approximately Tk 8.74 billion to the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust (BCCT), pending the formation of a new board of directors.
According to an official present, the decision was reached at a meeting held at the Bangladesh Bank headquarters, attended by representatives from the central bank, Padma Bank, BCCT, and relevant ministries.
The central bank had dissolved Padma Bank’s previous board on August 5 following a political shift but has yet to appoint a new board.
Padma Bank, formerly known as Farmers Bank, initially secured Tk 5.36 billion from the BCCT in 2015 as a Fixed Deposit Receipt (FDR) for a one-year term. After the FDR matured, the bank was able to repay only Tk 0.74 billion in phases, extending the remaining FDR amount until 2018. Since then, no additional payments have been made to the BCCT.
In January, Padma Bank unilaterally converted Tk 7.60 billion of the BCCT’s investment into preference shares with an 8-year tenure, offering a 6% interest rate. BCCT officials have stated that this conversion was done without their consent, raising concerns over the bank’s handling of funds.
The issue was revisited during a meeting of the BCCT’s Advisory Council on September 12, where concerns over the unrecovered funds were highlighted.
