The Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has traced nearly Tk40,000 crore worth of assets laundered from Bangladesh and invested across several countries.
According to CIC Director General Ahsan Habib, who briefed Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, the findings came after investigations conducted since January this year in seven cities across five countries.
On Sunday, NBR Chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan and CIC DG Ahsan Habib presented the findings before the chief adviser at the state guest house Jamuna.
In addition, evidence was found of 352 passports purchased by Bangladeshis in nine countries -- Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, North Macedonia, Malta, Saint Lucia, and Turkey.
Ahsan Habib said CIC investigators, after gathering intelligence inside Bangladesh, conducted on-site inspections abroad and collected detailed information.
“So far, we have identified 346 properties laundered in the names of individuals and institutions. This is only a partial picture of our ongoing investigations,” he said.
He added that CIC is working to confiscate these assets and bring them back to Bangladesh, as well as to ensure punishment for those involved. More than six international organizations are assisting in the process.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Habib noted, adding that CIC has the technical capacity to recover data deliberately erased from the central bank’s database during Sheikh Hasina’s government to conceal evidence of money laundering.
After being briefed, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus directed relevant authorities—including the ACC, CIC, and CID police—to act in coordination and bring those involved under the law.
“There must be an example set so that no one can loot the nation’s wealth and build assets abroad in the future,” Yunus said.
He instructed the CIC to continue its investigations, expand the scope to more countries, and dig deeper.
“The government will provide full support in every possible step to bring back the country’s wealth,” he assured.
Calling the looting of Bangladesh’s financial sector “a grave act of treason,” the chief adviser stressed: “To build a better future for the next generation, these looters must be exposed and held accountable. The nation must know how its wealth was plundered, and all institutions must work together to deliver justice.”
