Islami Bank shares fall below Tk 20

Shares of Islami Bank Bangladesh plunged 5.34 per cent to Tk 19.50 on the Dhaka Stock Exchange on Monday, falling below the Tk 20 mark for the first time since 2020. 

Mounting losses, rising bad loans and worsening financial strain have continued to erode investor confidence in the country's largest private bank.

The latest decline marks a sharp reversal from 24 September 2024, when the bank’s shares peaked at Tk 64, and its market capitalisation crossed Tk 10,000 crore. 

Monday's closing price reduced the bank's market value to Tk 3,139 crore, wiping out nearly Tk 7,000 crore from its peak valuation.

The bank reported a consolidated loss of Tk 3,286 crore in the first nine months of 2026, a sharp reversal from a consolidated profit of around Tk 100 crore during the same period a year earlier. 

Its standalone loss reached Tk 3,302.57 crore, including a loss of Tk 1,970.18 crore in the July–September quarter.

In its financial disclosure, the bank attributed the downturn to lower investment income and rising deposit profit expenses. Despite its declining deposit base. 

It said investment income was constrained by classified investments largely linked to fund embezzlement by connected parties and legacy exposures.

According to its 2025 annual report, classified loans surged 44 per cent to Tk 94,322 crore. It reached 51 per cent of total loans compared with 42.36 per cent in 2024. 

The bank also recorded a provisioning shortfall of Tk 84,615.15 crore. As it maintained only Tk 7,922.41 crore against a required Tk 92,537.56 crore.

A senior bank official attributed the surge in bad loans to previously concealed exposures linked to the S Alam Group. 

Bangladesh Bank then dissolved the board in June 2026. Since then a central bank-appointed administrator and an acting managing director have been overseeing the institution.

Source: The Business Standard