Tk 130cr Work Order to Int'l Co

BB notice on National Bank

5 April 2010, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent

Bangladesh Bank (BB) yesterday served notice on National Bank for not following an appropriate procedure in awarding a Tk 130 crore work order to an international company to construct a 20-storey building. The central bank asked why legal steps should not be taken against National Bank for "irregularity" in awarding the deal and set the private bank a one-week deadline to reply. It also put a bar on the release of funds for the project to construct the building on National Bank's land at Karwan Bazar. The bank's board of directors had decided to construct the 237,700-square-foot building with two basement floors. The bank selected South Korea's Heerim Architects and Planners Ltd for the job without international bidding, according to the notice addressed to the bank's managing director. The notice said the minutes of the board meeting had not mentioned specific details on how much to spend on which areas. A central bank official said BB issued the notice after an investigation. Abdur Rahman Sarker, managing director of National Bank, told The Daily Star: "I was on leave when the decision was made at a board meeting. I asked the bank's several divisions to give me necessary information. I shall reply to the notice by the deadline."