ABB clarifies reasons of bank MDs' USA visit

The Association of Bankers Bangladesh (ABB), the organisation of top officials of banks, gave a clarification through a press release today regarding media reports on USA visit of managing directors of different banks.

Today it said, some reports have been published in the media regarding the participation of these MDs in two upcoming events in the US.

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Prosecutorial Development, Training, and Assistance (OPDAT), in collaboration with the US Embassy in Dhaka invited managing directors of 26 banks from Bangladesh to the sixth Annual US-Bangladesh Bilateral Banking Dialogue, to be held in Washington during May 20-23 this year.

The purpose of this dialogue is to strengthen the interrelationship between Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit and the financial institutions under its supervision, as well as to work together on issues such as anti-money laundering and combating terror financing.

From the DOJ's perspective, attending this dialogue and adhering to the practices derived from it are mandatory for banks worldwide.

At this year's dialogue, representatives from DOJ's Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the US Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and the US Department of Homeland Security will present various topics to the MDs of Bangladeshi banks.

Additionally, there will be a field trip to learn about the cybersecurity and AML/CFT operations of a major US bank.

After the DOJ's programme in Washington, the managing directors of four banks—Agrani Bank, BRAC Bank, City Bank, and Dutch-Bangla Bank—will organise an event in New York to promote offshore banking fixed deposit products to expatriate Bangladeshis.

This marketing or outreach programme in New York for raising offshore banking dollar deposits has no connection with the DOJ's banking dialogue in Washington.

Bangladesh Bank recently introduced offshore banking deposit products to help increase foreign currency inflows to the country.

The MDs of these four banks will meet with over 350 Bangladeshi and foreign expatriates to encourage them to take advantage of this tax-free savings opportunity in Bangladesh.

Some media outlets have misleadingly portrayed the total cost of the four banks' New York event, including a dinner at a five-star hotel for about 300 guests, as the per-person expense for each of the 26 bank MDs in Washington, which is unfortunate.