{"id":29999,"date":"2025-09-06T16:38:03","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T16:38:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thebangladeshtoday.com\/?p=29999"},"modified":"2025-09-06T16:38:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T16:38:04","slug":"five-troubled-banks-turn-into-a-nightmare-for-customers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thebangladeshtoday.com\/?p=29999","title":{"rendered":"Five troubled banks turn into a nightmare for customers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>TBT DESK: <\/strong>Once trusted by millions, five private banks in Bangladesh have now become a source of fear and frustration for their customers. EXIM Bank, Social Islami Bank, Union Bank, Global Islami Bank and First Security Islami Bank are struggling so severely that they can barely return depositors\u2019 money \u2014 in many cases, not even their own staff salaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Across Dhaka\u2019s Motijheel and Naya Paltan, as well as in districts such as Satkhira, branches of these banks present a silent, uneasy picture. Inside, employees sit helplessly, while outside, customers line up in hope. Each day, 20 to 30 people arrive desperate to withdraw funds, but few walk away with more than a fraction of what they need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One officer at Global Islami Bank, requesting anonymity, admitted that the central bank had withdrawn support ahead of the planned merger. \u201cFor over a month, we have been unable to pay anyone properly. Even our own salaries are stuck,\u201d he said, his voice heavy with frustration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For customers, the consequences have been devastating\u2014a man in Naya Paltan seeking money for his father\u2019s medical treatment left empty-handed after repeated visits. \u201cMy father\u2019s savings are locked inside, but I cannot access them. With the small amount they allowed me, foreign treatment is impossible,\u201d he said, close to tears. Another client, requiring Tk 1.1 million for heart surgery, was handed just Tk 200,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Union Bank\u2019s managing director, Md Humayun Kabir, conceded that even corporate fixed deposits could not be repaid. \u201cWe are struggling to return even small savers\u2019 money,\u201d he said, though he insisted staff salaries were still being processed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ordinary depositors describe a life reduced to despair. A schoolteacher in Satkhira was told he could withdraw no more than 5,000 Tk a week, despite having over Tk 300,000 in his account. Another man, after 18 fruitless visits, could not withdraw even Tk 1,000 from his savings. \u201cI had put money aside for safety,\u201d said Saddam Hossain, \u201cbut now I am borrowing just to keep my family afloat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The staff are no better off. One officer, entitled to Tk 80,000 a month, explained that he could access only tiny sums \u2014 and often had to pay a 15-Tk fee at other banks\u2019 ATMs. \u201cI never thought I\u2019d be begging friends for loans while my salary sits beyond reach,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Bangladesh Bank had earlier injected Tk 520 billion in liquidity support to rescue these banks after the fall of the previous government in August 2024. But with non-performing loans consuming 77 % of their lending portfolios, and a capital shortfall of over 450 billion Tk, the crisis has only deepened. More than 9.2 million customers and 15,000 employees are caught in the storm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Former central bank governor Dr Salehuddin Ahmed has warned that \u201c80 % of funds in the banking sector have been looted,\u201d estimating that restructuring may require at least $35 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In response, the central bank has now approved a draft Deposit Protection Ordinance 2025, promising depositors a 100 % guarantee of their savings \u2014 even in troubled or merging institutions. \u201cA strong new bank will be created from the merger, backed by government support,\u201d said Bangladesh Bank spokesperson Arif Hossain Khan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still, uncertainty remains. With EXIM and Social Islami Bank reluctant to join the merger, progress has stalled. Economists argue that only a swift consolidation can restore public confidence. Until then, depositors like Saddam, the schoolteacher, and countless others remain trapped in a cycle of waiting, pleading and hoping \u2014 a painful reminder that for many Bangladeshis today, their own bank has become their worst nightmare.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>TBT DESK: Once trusted by millions, five private banks in Bangladesh have now become a source of fear and frustration for their customers. EXIM Bank, Social Islami Bank, Union Bank, Global Islami Bank and First Security Islami Bank are struggling so severely that they can barely return depositors\u2019 money \u2014 in many cases, not even [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":30000,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[110],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy-business"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Five troubled banks turn into a nightmare for customers - The Bangladesh Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thebangladeshtoday.com\/?p=29999\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Five troubled banks turn into a nightmare for customers - The Bangladesh Today\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"TBT DESK: Once trusted by millions, five private banks in Bangladesh have now become a source of fear and frustration for their customers. EXIM Bank, Social Islami Bank, Union Bank, Global Islami Bank and First Security Islami Bank are struggling so severely that they can barely return depositors\u2019 money \u2014 in many cases, not even [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thebangladeshtoday.com\/?p=29999\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Bangladesh Today\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/web.facebook.com\/TBTNews.Media\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-06T16:38:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-06T16:38:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thebangladeshtoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Five-troubled-banks-turn-into-a-nightmare-for-customers.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"709\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"399\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"shehab munawar\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"shehab munawar\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/?p=29999#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/?p=29999\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"shehab munawar\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7a38eb8041e1c1a7cdff37589cf084c7\"},\"headline\":\"Five troubled banks turn into a nightmare for customers\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-06T16:38:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-06T16:38:04+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/?p=29999\"},\"wordCount\":583,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/?p=29999#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thebangladeshtoday.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/Five-troubled-banks-turn-into-a-nightmare-for-customers.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Economy &amp; 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