A series of happenings in recent times and also in the not-too-distant past -- loan scams like those of Hallmark, Bismillah Group and BASIC Bank, credit forgeries, defalcation of depositors' funds by devious means, the heist of the country's foreign exchange reserve at its central bank etcetera -- have brought the critical issues of morale and integrity of the professionals in its banking sector, to the fore. The cyber crime at the central bank is now under investigation by an official inquiry committee. Hopefully, it will bring to light, in clear details, the 'hows' of this most worrying incident. Meanwhile, yet another appalling development -- stealing of an amount of Tk 19 million in interest payments on fixed deposits with a branch of a state-owned commercial banks (SoCB) by one of its executives -- has further unveiled how fragile internal monitoring in the country's banking sector is today. The executive, who is allegedly involved in this case, had been debiting interest incomes of the FDRs through vouchers and credited those to two false accounts so as to grab the money since his joining the bank's Motijheel branch in 2013. The executive was immediately detained and suspended and a case has been filed against him. Most of the money has also been recovered. Strict follow-up actions have succeeded in detecting the mischief and the thief. However, it is not yet known for certain whether it was a solo performance or there were other accomplices.
The latest incident occurred at a very unpropitious time when efforts are on to help recover the amount of money in foreign exchange that was stolen through digital hacking from the Bangladesh Bank's account with the New York Federal Reserve Bank. The new BB governor has rightly placed the issue of recovery of the stolen money on top of his agenda. While obliquely pointing to stealing of depositors' money and other scams in banks, the governor has also directed high-ups of all commercial banks to keep a close eye on their respective management officials and scrutinise their passports and other details. There is no denying that only strong and cautious efforts would make the country's banking sector sound and vibrant, without providing any reason for depositors' worries over the safety and security of their funds kept with the banks.
Banks and trust go together. Here, integrity and probity of the banking personnel count most to ensure people's trust in banks. It is extremely important for the banks to create conditions where the morale of their working personnel is in no way compromised. A carrot-and-stick policy needs to be followed in right earnest for the purpose. However, the not-too-distant Hallmark and a few other scams in the country's banking sector are unfortunately yet to be dealt with, sternly; their perpetrators are either going scot-free or have not been awarded deterrent punishment.
It will be impossible to avert any worsening of the situation in the coming days, if right actions in right time are not taken against hackers, forgers and a section of dishonest bankers. Surely, the banking sector is not facing any crisis right now; but heist and forgery have made a dent in its image. This is precisely the reason why the need for addressing the issues of morale, integrity and probity of bank officials and dealing firmly with persons involved in cyber crimes, thefts and forgeries in the sector is so pressing under the given circumstances. Crimes going unpunished will only tend to breed more such crimes.
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