BSEC unfreezes Hero-Sayedur’s BO account

BanglaPress Desk: The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has decided to conditionally "unfreeze" 77 Beneficiary Owner (BO) accounts belonging to Md. Abul Khayer Hero—a Deputy Registrar at the Department of Cooperatives—and his associates, following allegations of repeated stock market manipulation. Simultaneously, the BSEC has decided to lift the freeze on 16 BO accounts linked to Md. Sayedur Rahman, the former president of the Bangladesh Merchant Bankers Association (BMBA) and former Managing Director of Eastern Bank Securities. During a commission meeting on November 3, the BSEC had initially decided to conditionally withdraw the freeze orders on certain BO accounts; however, following further scrutiny, the commission—in a meeting held on Tuesday—granted final approval to unfreeze only the accounts associated with these two individuals.

In the aftermath of the July 2024 mass uprising, a total of 748 BO accounts in the stock market were frozen following directives from the BSEC, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), and the courts. This included the accounts of Abul Khayer Hero and Sayedur Rahman. Even with the unfreezing of these accounts, 655 other BO accounts remain frozen.

Sayedur Rahman faces numerous allegations of facilitating fraud and irregularities in the approval of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) for various companies in the stock market. Several companies that entered the market via IPOs after 2010 ceased operations within a few years of their listing. Meanwhile, Abul Khayer Hero, despite being a government official, allegedly amassed hundreds of crores of taka through persistent and illegal stock market manipulation.

It is also alleged that the former BSEC Chairman, Professor Shibli Rubaiyat-Ul-Islam, provided direct and indirect support to Hero in his market manipulation activities and benefited from them during his tenure. Through the mediation of Shibli Rubaiyat-Ul-Islam, the world-renowned—and often controversial—cricketer Shakib Al Hasan entered into the stock trading business with Abul Khayer Hero. Between November 2022 and 2024, the newspaper *Samakal* published several in-depth investigative reports on this matter.

**Why the accounts were unblocked**
According to sources within the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), individuals including Chayedur Rahman filed a writ petition with the High Court, challenging the freezing of their Beneficiary Owner (BO) accounts and requesting that they be unblocked. Simultaneously, the brokerage houses and merchant banks that had provided margin loans for the purchase of shares in these frozen accounts also appealed to the BSEC.

They explained that because the accounts remained frozen, they were unable to sell shares—even as prices fell—to adjust the margin loans. This has led to a capital shortfall (negative equity) in these accounts, leaving the financial institutions at risk of further losses. The DSE Brokers Association (DBA) also issued a letter supporting the request made by these brokerage houses. BSEC officials stated that, after considering all aspects, the Commission decided to unblock the BO accounts of the two individuals in question.

**Conditions attached to the unblocking**
While the accounts have been unblocked, allowing Hero and Chayedur Rahman to trade shares, there is a restriction: they are prohibited from trading any shares in the "block market" until further notice. In other words, they are permitted to trade shares exclusively in the "public market."

The Commission has imposed further conditions: although they may trade shares, they are not permitted to withdraw any proceeds from the sale of shares held in these accounts. Furthermore, they cannot transfer shares to any other brokerage house or merchant bank by linking their accounts. However, brokerage houses or merchant banks that have provided margin loans for these accounts are permitted to sell shares—solely for the purpose of recovering outstanding margin loans and accrued interest—and to transfer the resulting funds.

Accounts that remain frozen
While the accounts of 'Hero' and Sayedur have been eased, the BO (Beneficiary Owner) accounts of other influential individuals on the list remain frozen. Among these influential figures are Salman F. Rahman, former Vice Chairman of the Beximco Group, and his son, Ahmed Sayan Fazlur Rahman; their BO accounts were frozen on November 21, 2024, following an order from the BFIU (Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit).
The BO accounts of former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan were frozen on August 29 and September 1, 2024, respectively, under directives from the BSEC (Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission). The account of former State Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Mohammad A. Arafat, was also frozen under the same directive.
The regulatory body’s list further includes Professor Shibli Rubaiyat-Ul-Islam, former Chairman of the BSEC, and Chowdhury Nafeez Sarafat, former Chairman of Padma Bank; their BO accounts were frozen on August 21 and 22, 2024. Similarly, the BO accounts of Md. Nazrul Islam Mazumder, head of the NASA Group, and Mohammad Saiful Alam, head of the S. Alam Group, were also frozen in August.
In addition to individual accounts, the BO accounts of several large corporate entities also remain suspended. These include the account of Beximco Holdings Limited, frozen on November 10, 2024, by order of the BSEC, and the account of Sikder Insurance Company Limited, frozen by a court order on April 9, 2025.
Explaining why the other accounts have not been unfrozen, the authority stated that investigations and legal proceedings—involving the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), the BFIU, and the courts—are currently underway against these influential individuals regarding allegations of money laundering, corruption, and irregularities within the banking sector. Legal obligations and court-ordered stays are among the reasons for this.