Swindling Of TK 30CR From Job Seekers
BB asks Prime to file criminal cases against officials involved
Bangladesh Bank has asked Prime Bank Ltd to take legal action against the officials of SMG Infocom Ltd and Prime Bank who were involved in swindling of around Tk 30 crore received from 2,500 jobseekers as undertaking. The BB issued a letter to managing director of Prime Bank on November 16 asking him to take legal action against the scamsters and to ensure refund of the undertaking money to the jobseekers by December 4 this year.
The BB in its letter said that this type of swindling is a criminal offence and punishable under the panel code.
The central bank issued two separate letters between August 27 and May 14 this year asking the bank to refund the money but it (Prime Bank) did not do so, denying the responsibility for the fraudulent act.
The BB letter said that the bank had no scope to escape the BB action against the fraudulent act of SMG Infocom Ltd and it could not avoid the responsibility for the act in accordance with the Article 7.7 of the central bank’s guidelines on mobile financial services for banks.
It said that it was unexpected that Prime Bank was yet to refund the undertaking money to the jobseekers despite repeated directions given by the central bank in this connection.
The BB cancelled the mobile banking licence of Prime Bank on August 6 this year as the central bank found that Prime Bank was responsible for the swindling of up to Tk 30 crore from the 2,500 job seekers by the bank-appointed mobile banking service solution provider SMG Infocom, using tricks.
The central bank will take more punitive measures against Prime Bank if it fails to refund the undertaking money and fails to file cases against the scamsters with the criminal court by December 4, 2014, a BB official told New Age on Thursday.
The BB earlier conducted an inspection of the mobile financial services of Prime Bank where the central bank had unearthed that SMG Infocom recruited around 2,500 people to operate mobile banking services of Prime Bank.
The solution provider took huge amount of money from them as undertaking, using tricks, the BB inspection report said.
The report said that SMG Infocom had closed its operation immediately after the recruitment leaving 2,500 jobless but it had not refunded the undertaking money to the appointed people.
The BB official said that SMG Infocom had received between Tk 50,000 and Tk 2,50,000 from each person as undertaking money.
The solution provider had assured the jobseekers that it would refund the undertaking money to them after recruitment, the official said.
The BB inspection report said SMG Infocom had not returned the undertaking money to the appointed persons, violating the commitment and it also closed its operation.
-With New Age input
