Muhammad A (Rumee) Ali steps down as chairman of the board of directors of AB Bank Limited, the country's first private commercial bank, on Wednesday.
Ali, also a former deputy governor of the Bangladesh Bank, told the media that he made his intentions clear at the annual general meeting (AGM) of the bank on the day.
"Actually, my tenure has expired and I would not like to continue as the chairman, although my name has been proposed along with other names," he also said.
"I served the bank for three years. More funds need to be injected for strengthening the bank," he added.
In a written speech at the AGM, he read: "I have decided that I will not seek reelection to the board. Therefore, this is my final appearance as the chairman."
"For a sustainable growth of the bank in the future there is a caveat… this will only be possible, if we have supportive capital adequacy policy that looks to enhance the bank's ability to grow its lending assets and increase revenue," he added.
Ali joined AB Bank as the chairman through a company that owns the bank. He was not a sponsor director of the bank. The AB Bank board appointed him as its chairman on 20 April 2019.
According to the annual financial statements, the bank's deposit growth surged by nearly 27% to Tk29,837 crore in 2021 over that of 2018.
Its profit after tax increased to Tk71.68 crore in 2021.
With Tk0.86 EPS (earnings per share), the bank declared a 5% dividend for the shareholders for 2021.
Introducing Bangladesh to its very first private sector bank, AB Bank Limited was incorporated on December 31, 1981.
The bank started its operation from April 12, 1982.
