Staff Correspondent
The customs intelligence has detected the siphoning off Tk 3.82 billion through trade-based money laundering which economists suspect as one reason behind Bangladesh’s foreign-exchange crunch.
Four export-oriented companies are allegedly found involved in the laundering of funds.
Customs intelligence said its team found Sabiha Saiki Fashion (SSF), ASIA Trading Corporation, Emu Trading, and Ilham involved in export-documentation forgery and that their export earnings were not repatriated.
Talking to the FE, Director-General of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID) Md Fakhrul Alam said the intelligence team had detected SSF first and three others thereafter on the basis of further scrutiny.
“The team will continue its investigation to check capital flight through export-proceeds from Bangladesh,” the DG said about further drives, as these discoveries are deemed not that big in proportion to reported volumes of capital flight.
Customs intelligence termed these cases of money laundering in connivance between the export-oriented companies and clearing and forwarding agent Limax Shippers Ltd.
“They have used fake sales contract and other companies’ e-EXP in the bill of export,” says the revenue intelligence in its report.
The companies have also allegedly used special export code in bill of export, and in some cases, codes for bonded companies.
As detected, Same C&F submitted the bills of export for four companies.
An investigation team of customs launched a drive in the SAPL (OCL) depot at Chattogram, North Patenga, on January 31, 2023 and conducted physical investigation into nine product chalans in seven 40-foot container goods.
The customs detected many undeclared goods, including baby dresses, jeans pants, shirts, and shawls, although they declared only T-shirt and ladies’ dresses as export items.
To investigate the irregularities and submit a report on this, the customs formed an eight-member investigation committee.
SSF has exported 86 chalans with 997 tonnes of men’s trousers, T-shirts, baby shirts, bags, polo shirts, and pants, worth Tk 210 million, to the UAE, Malaysia, Singapore, Saudi Arab and Nigeria, says a statement of the CIID.
Customs has checked the electronic export permission (e-EXP) with the ASYCUDA World System and data collected from Agrani and BRAC banks. It found the 86 e-EXPs issued in favour of different exporters but there were mismatches between e-EXP and bill of export.
“As e-EXP was found not valid against bill of export, there is no scope to repatriate money in legal channel,” the customs intelligence says.
In the investigation process, the revenue sleuths also found forgery in export process by the other export-oriented companies: ASIA Trading Corporation, Emu Trading, and Ilham.
The commercial banks concerned said the exporting companies used e-EXP of other companies.
Customs intelligence found it as confirmed evidence of siphoning off money as there is no scope to repatriate money in this process. Asia Trading Corporation exported 1,382 products or about 14,085 tonnes of T-shirts, tops, and ladies’ dresses, worth Tk 2.82 billion, mainly to the UAE, Malaysia, Singapore, Qatar and the UK.
As per BRAC Bank, its lien bank, data of the company, the e-EXP has not been issued in favour of the company. The bank also said entire bank transactions by the company remained stopped since 2018.
Emu Trading, Jabbar Market, Dokkhin Khan Bazaar, Dhaka, has shipped 273 products chalan or 2523 tonnes of T-shirts, trousers, and tops, worth Tk 620 million, to Saudi Arab, Malaysia and the UAE.
Sonali Bank, the lien bank, data show the e-EXP has not been issued in favour of Emu Trading.
The case of Ilham, located in city’s Uttara, is similar to those two companies. It exported 39 product chalans or 660 tonnes of T-shirts, and ladies’ dresses worth Tk 170 million but its lien bank, Sonali, has not issued e-EXP in favour of the company.

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