Monitoring of suspicious financial transactions has significantly strengthened in Bangladesh to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.
As a reflection of this, 30,199 suspicious transaction reports (STRs) and suspicious activity reports (SARs) were submitted to the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) in FY25—marking a 74% increase compared to the previous fiscal year.
Nearly 95% of these reports originated from the country's banking sector.
On Wednesday (July 15), BFIU released its annual report for FY25 during a press conference held at the Bangladesh Bank headquarters.
The report revealed that of the total reports submitted during this fiscal year, 20,524 were Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) and 9,675 were Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs).
Comparative statistics show that a total of 17,345 suspicious transaction and activity reports were submitted in FY24.
In FY21, that number was just 5,280. This indicates that suspicious transaction reporting has increased nearly six-fold within a span of four years.
According to the BFIU, under the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012 (amended in 2015) and the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2009, it is mandatory for all reporting organizations to report any detected suspicious transactions or activities to the BFIU without delay.
If a customer's transactions or activities appear unusual or risky, the relevant institution must immediately file a report.
The BFIU's analysis attributes the rise in reports to several factors. These include stricter supervision by regulatory bodies, increased emphasis on compliance by financial institutions, the use of advanced technology in monitoring transactions, and growing awareness regarding the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing.
Additionally, the report noted that surveillance has been bolstered to detect and monitor highly risky activities such as online gambling and betting, irregular foreign exchange transactions, cryptocurrency, and digital hundi.
Sector-wise analysis shows that the country's banking sector is the most active in submitting suspicious transaction and activity reports.
For the last three fiscal years, over 90% of the total reports have come from banks.
This rate was 91% in FY23, 92% in FY24, and rose to 95% in FY25.
In the latest fiscal year, banks submitted a total of 28,755 suspicious transaction and activity reports, up from 15,991 in the previous fiscal year.
This represents an increase of nearly 80% within a year for the banking sector, and is more than double the 12,809 reports submitted in FY23.
According to the BFIU, this growth is a direct result of risk-based supervision in banks, advanced transaction monitoring systems, and an increased institutional focus on compliance.
The report further stated that apart from banks, other financial institutions have also become more active in identifying suspicious transactions.
In FY25, reports submitted by non-bank financial institutions rose from 121 to 250.
During the same period, reports submitted by money transfer organizations (MTOs) increased from 900 to 1,095.
However, the share of these institutions in the total volume remains relatively small.
Financial institutions contributed about 1% of the total reports, while money transfer organizations accounted for approximately 4%.
The BFIU pointed out that an increase in suspicious transaction reports does not necessarily mean that actual money laundering has increased.
Rather, it indicates that financial sector surveillance, compliance, and the capability to identify risky transactions are significantly stronger than ever before.