DHAKA, Jan 6, 2026 (BSS) - The ACC today filed five cases against 15 people, including former chairman of Premier Bank HBM Iqbal for embezzling about Taka 81.7 million in the name of advertisement promotions.

The information was disclosed by Director General of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Md Akhtar Hossain at the regular media briefing of the commission at its headquarters here this afternoon.

According to the ACC, the accused, in connivance with each other, misappropriated the money in 2020 against five work orders issued for advertisement promotions. 

The accused include the bank’s former chairman, several directors and senior officials, as well as the Managing Director of an advertising firm, Mind Tree Limited.

The ACC investigation revealed that in 2020, Premier Bank authorities issued five work orders worth about Taka 92.5 million to Mind Tree Limited for advertising on various television channels. As per the agreements, advertisements were supposed to be broadcast for specific durations on each channel. However, in reality, less than half of the contracted airtime was aired.

An examination of records and transmission certificates from the relevant television channels showed that while the contract stipulated a total of 2,400 minutes of advertising, only 1,200 minutes were actually broadcast. Despite this, full bills were submitted and approved by the authorities.

The investigation also found that against the five work orders, only Taka 10.8 million was actually paid to Mind Tree Limited, while the rest amount worth about Taka 81.7 million was embezzled. Later, attempts were also made to legitimize the misappropriated money through fake records and adjustments.

In addition, between 2011 and 2025, more than Taka 4.3871 billion was deposited as advance payments in the name of Mind Tree Limited for advertising purposes. 

Although a large portion of this amount was adjusted later by showing work orders after long delays, around Taka 964.1 million remains unadjusted, according to the investigation.

The prominent accused in the cases are former Premier Bank Chairman HBM Iqbal, several directors and senior officials of the bank and Mind Tree Limited’s Managing Director Iqbal Al Mahmud.

The ACC stated that the cases have been filed under sections 409, 420, 467, 468, 471 and 109 of the Penal Code, section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 and sections 4(2) and 4(3) of the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012.