In order to tackle illegal activities and corruption like flight of capital and illegal money transaction, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of the country will supervise digital and online mobile banking and financial transactions of courier services. Moreover, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) of Bangladesh Bank and ACC can investigate any non-banking financial transaction.
For an individual to have a mobile account, they must provide valid mobile number, national ID card or passport copy and a picture with fingerprint. However, the rules are not followed properly and many people can easily use mobile transaction services without leaving any proof. This has allowed miscreants to use these services to fund illicit militant operations. They carry out illegal activities such as drug trafficking, smuggling, etc. thanks to these loopholes in the surveillance system.
The government is also suffering financial losses in the form of revenue as some courier services even conduct cash transactions across the country, leaving no trace of such transactions. Money laundering and corruption is being facilitated by unscrupulous officials and employees. They take advantage of these anonymous and unsupervised financial transactions to carry out illegal activities.
Several recommendations were given by the ACC and BFIU, such as Know Your Customer (KYC) for both mobile and courier financial transactions, digital invoice for each transaction from agent, maintaining ledger book for transactions and placing a limit for highest and lowest transaction. It further stated that courier services must take permission from Bangladesh Bank for financial transactions.
The initiative is highly welcome as unsupervised financial transactions have put our national security at risk. Criminal individuals and organizations must not be allowed to carry out their financial dealings so easily. In developed nations, it is nearly impossible to carry out financial transactions without leaving some form of proof, whether it is a paper trail or a digital record of some sort. This not only deters criminals in those countries, but also helps law enforcers to apprehend the culprits. We hope that this initiative is implemented properly throughout the country.
The initiative is highlywelcome as unsupervised financial transactions have put our national securityat risk