A syndicate has fraudulently withdrawn money from the National Savings Directorate’s (NSD) digital system. By encashing other people’s savings certificates before their maturity dates, the group transferred the funds into their own bank accounts. In total, around 2.5 million Bangladeshi taka was moved. The central bank, however, managed to block an attempt to steal an additional 5 million taka. The fraud was detected in savings certificates purchased through Bangladesh Bank’s Motijheel office. Officials confirmed that the scam was conducted using the password of that very branch.
Bangladesh Bank filed a General Diary (GD) with Motijheel Police Station on Tuesday regarding the incident and is now preparing to lodge a formal case.
Mohammad Shahriar Siddiqui, Assistant Spokesperson of Bangladesh Bank, told reporters on Wednesday that those whose accounts received the money and those involved in the fraud have been identified and will face legal action. He added that preliminary findings indicate the password of someone who manages the savings certificate system was used for the fraud. Bangladesh Bank is currently preparing to file a criminal case with Motijheel Police Station.
According to the National Savings Directorate’s regulations, when a customer purchases a savings certificate, the profits and principal amount are sent to the same bank account listed during purchase. Furthermore, any request to change account information or withdraw funds must be made at the same office from which the certificate was purchased. Upon submission of such a request, a one-time password (OTP) is sent to the customer’s registered mobile number. The customer must then show the OTP in person to the authorised officer, who enters it into the system to approve the transaction. Every such process leaves a digital footprint on the server.
However, for the past year and a half, many customers have been unable to withdraw funds from their respective banks. Complaints have surfaced that even though remittances or savings certificate proceeds are deposited, customers cannot access their money. This issue has prompted many to apply for bank transfers. Considering customer difficulties, the authorities have been allowing such transfers—an opportunity that, according to Bangladesh Bank officials at the Motijheel office, may have been exploited by the fraudsters.
Last Thursday, a person purchased savings certificates worth 2.5 million taka from Bangladesh Bank’s Motijheel office. The buyer’s bank account is held at Agrani Bank’s National Press Club Branch. Merely four days later, on Monday, the certificate was encashed, and the funds were transferred to another person’s account at NRBC Bank’s Dinajpur sub-branch. The money was subsequently withdrawn from NRBC Bank’s Shyamoli branch in Dhaka shortly after being deposited.
On the same day, attempts were made to encash savings certificates worth 3 million taka via Dutch-Bangla Bank and another 2 million taka via NRB Bank using the same method. However, these transactions were blocked after being detected by Bangladesh Bank.
The central bank spoke with the three savings certificate holders involved. All confirmed that they had not submitted any request to encash their certificates. Consequently, no OTP was sent to their registered mobile numbers. Following the discovery, the three officials of Bangladesh Bank who had access to the relevant system passwords were relieved of their duties and replaced with new officers.
Officials at the central bank confirmed that the fraud was executed using authorised passwords. Therefore, those who had access to them are now under strict surveillance. Investigations are also under way to determine whether external individuals were involved in the operation.
According to the National Savings Directorate, as of August this year, customers hold savings certificates worth 3.4 trillion taka across various authorised institutions, including banks. Bangladesh Bank, government and private commercial banks, the Savings Directorate, and the postal service together manage the sale and encashment of these certificates through approximately 12,000 branches across the country.