Tk76,000 crore in assets seized in FY24-25: BFIU

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) seized assets worth around 76,000 crore takas, including 57,000 crore takas in Bangladesh and 19,000 crore takas abroad, as per court orders during the 2024-25 fiscal year. 

"The money has been seized by court order and the assets will remain frozen until the legal process is completed," BFIU Head Iqtiaruddin Md Mamun said at a press briefing at the Bangladesh Bank headquarters on Tuesday while unveiling the BFIU Annual Report 2024-25.

He said the BFIU remains committed to protecting the assets of the people of Bangladesh and is conducting investigations into suspicious financial transactions impartially, regardless of political affiliation or personal identity.

Responding to a question, Mamun said the BFIU has strengthened its anti-money laundering efforts by increasing the use of technology including Artificial Intelligence (AI) to detect suspicious transactions more effectively.

The annual report also showed that the BFIU recorded a 74 percent increase in suspicious financial reports in FY2024-25 compared to the previous fiscal year.

According to the report, the financial intelligence agency received 30,199 suspicious reports during FY2024-25 including 20,524 Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) and 9,675 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs).

The figure was significantly higher than the 17,345 reports received in FY2023-24 and nearly six times the 5,280 reports submitted in FY2020-21.

The BFIU attributed the sharp rise to stronger regulatory enforcement and compliance requirements for reporting entities, improved technological capabilities for transaction monitoring and pattern detection, increased awareness among financial institutions about money laundering and terrorist financing risks, and a rise in suspicious financial activities, including online gambling and betting, foreign exchange (FX) and cryptocurrency trading, and digital hundi.

The report said the banking sector continued to dominate Bangladesh's financial intelligence reporting system, accounting for 95 percent of all submissions in FY2024-25, up from 92 percent a year earlier. 

Banks alone submitted 28,755 STRs and SARs during the fiscal year, marking an 80 percent increase from 15,991 reports in FY2023-24.

Although financial institutions and money remitters also recorded increases in the number of suspicious reports over the past three years, their overall contributions remained limited, accounting for about one percent and four percent of total reports respectively in FY2024-25.

The report also noted increased cooperation between the BFIU and law enforcement agencies.

Requests for financial intelligence from law enforcement and intelligence agencies rose by about 15 percent to 1,329 in FY2024-25 from 1,157 in the previous fiscal year.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Bangladesh Police and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) were the leading agencies seeking financial intelligence from the BFIU.

Meanwhile, the BFIU observed a year-on-year decline in Cash Transaction Reports (CTRs), which are mandatory for cash deposits or withdrawals of 10 lakh taka or more in a single day.

Banks and financial institutions reported 31.25 million cash transactions involving 19,452 billion takas, while financial companies reported 1,484 such transactions worth 2.17 billion takas.

According to the report, the decline in CTRs reflects Bangladesh Bank's continued efforts to promote a cashless and digitally enabled financial ecosystem.