Dhaka-based SBAC Bank Plc has applied to have Chowdhury declared bankrupt, according to a court filing cited in a Bloomberg report published on 7 September.
Former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury outside his apartment in London. Photo: Al Jazeera
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Former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury outside his apartment in London. Photo: Al Jazeera
Former Bangladesh land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Jabed is facing a bankruptcy petition in London’s High Court after the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) froze a property portfolio linked to him and his family worth around £185 million ($250 million).
Dhaka-based SBAC Bank Plc has applied to have Chowdhury declared bankrupt, according to a court filing cited in a Bloomberg report published on 7 September.
The NCA froze 342 properties linked to Chowdhury and his family last year as part of an investigation, while authorities in Bangladesh have also been investigating the former minister.
MFS, a now-collapsed UK bridging finance provider, arranged loans against more than 175 property transactions involving Chowdhury, according to the report.
ZTS Properties Ltd, the holding company for properties linked to Chowdhury, is currently in administration as the NCA’s investigation continues.
SBAC Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A phone number previously used by Chowdhury also went unanswered.
Chowdhury served as Bangladesh’s land minister for five years until January 2024 under the Awami League government led by Sheikh Hasina.
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