BFIU warns banks to protect data ahead of mutual evaluation

The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) has warned banks to ensure the confidentiality and security of information as Bangladesh prepares for its mutual evaluation by the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) for the 2027–28 term.

The warning came at a meeting with the chief anti-money laundering compliance officers (CAMLCOs) of scheduled banks at Bangladesh Bank headquarters today.

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Iqtiaruddin Md Mamun, head of the BFIU, presided over the meeting.

When contacted, Mamun told The Daily Star that banks had been advised to ensure data security and maintain the confidentiality of information.

“A mutual evaluation will be conducted in the future, and if we fail to protect the confidentiality of information, it will be viewed negatively, which could be harmful to the country as a whole,” he said.

A mutual evaluation is a peer review of a country's legal, regulatory and institutional framework for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing against the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The APG, of which Bangladesh is a member, is the relevant regional body for the evaluation.

An APG delegation, which completed a three-day Preliminary Mutual Evaluation Planning visit to Dhaka in August, warned that weaknesses in information confidentiality could negatively affect Bangladesh's upcoming mutual evaluation.

The BFIU, the country's financial intelligence unit, leads and coordinates Bangladesh's preparation for and participation in the evaluation. 

At least three CAMLCOs of different banks said confidentiality of information was discussed at the meeting and that banks were cautioned about maintaining it.

The meeting also discussed the recent leak to the media of a BFIU request for information on the bank accounts of popular YouTuber Salman Muqtadir, at least three CAMLCOs of different banks said.

The BFIU recently asked banks to provide details of Muqtadir's bank accounts within half an hour, according to a letter sent to the banks.

The unusually short deadline has sparked questions about why the information was sought so urgently and why the request required such a quick response.