Within a day of the board meeting on 20 November, the bank issued public notices to auction 193 decimals of land and all structures on it at Beximco Industrial Park, which had been mortgaged as collateral for loans on three of the factories. Notices for the other three factories are expected to be published soon, according to bank sources.
The 20 November board meeting was initially scheduled for 18 November. The original agenda focused on approving a draft agreement between Beximco, Janata Bank, and Japanese firm Revival, which had expressed interest in leasing the factories. The meeting was postponed, and the agenda was changed to include auctioning Beximco’s mortgaged assets to recover outstanding loans.
When contacted for comment, Janata Bank MD and CEO Md Mazibur Rahman did not answer the call. He later replied via WhatsApp but declined to comment, saying he was busy in a meeting and would speak later but he did not receive subsequent calls. However, a senior labour ministry official told TBS that during various meetings, Janata Bank’s MD opposed leasing and favoured auctioning the factories. Reports also suggest that a government adviser and a secretary supported the auction over reopening.
On 21 November, the bank placed advertisements in several newspapers announcing the auction of all outstanding loans, including interest, for International Knitwear & Apparel Limited’s Unit-1 and Unit-2, Urban Fashions Limited, and Apollo Apparels Limited.
