Staff Reporter :
The Cabinet Division has established a six-member committee, led by Law Adviser Asif Nazrul, to reassess the 2016 cyber theft involving Bangladesh Bank’s reserves.
A gazette notification, signed by Mohammad Khaled Rahim, Additional Secretary of the Cabinet Division, was issued on Wednesday (12 March).
The committee comprises Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, Adviser to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources; Faiz Ahmed Tayyab, Special Assistant at the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications, and Information Technology; Ahsan H Mansur, Governor of Bangladesh Bank; Ali Ashfaq, Director of Biman Bangladesh Airlines; and Nazrul Huda, Chairman of Rupali Bank PLC.
The primary responsibilities of the committee include assessing the progress of the investigation into the 2016 reserve heist, evaluating the government’s response, identifying those accountable, and proposing necessary recommendations.
In February 2016, hackers infiltrated Bangladesh Bank’s accounts with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, stealing $101 million. Of this amount, $81 million was diverted to four accounts at RCBC in the Philippines, while another $20 million was intended for transfer to a Sri Lankan bank. However, the Sri Lankan transaction failed due to a spelling error made by the hackers.
Subsequently, Bangladesh Bank managed to recover approximately $15 million from the Philippines. Following the incident, then Deputy Director (Accounts and Budgeting) of Bangladesh Bank, Zobayer Bin Huda, lodged a complaint at Motijheel Police Station on 15 March 2016.
