As part of their international obligations and responsibilities, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) today encouraged the destination nations to take decisive action to assist Bangladesh in returning laundered assets.
Bangladesh bears the primary responsibility for preventing, controlling, and recovering money that has been laundered. In a press release, TIB Executive Director Dr. Iftekharuzzaman stated, “But it is not avoidable that the destination countries help Bangladesh bring back the smuggled assets.”
He vehemently demanded that any illicit assets that Bangladeshis possess outside be immediately frozen so they can be brought back to their homeland.
The executive director of TIB stated that wealthy and developed nations are the primary recipients of the majority of money that is smuggled out of Bangladesh, as most prominent political party leaders who have been removed from office are the wealth’s owners.
The United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and a few other nations like Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, particularly Dubai, as well as numerous “offshore” island regions have drawn interest from Bangladeshi nationals looking to launder money.
Iftekharuzzaman claimed that strong syndicates of extremely competent legal firms, trust companies, offshore specialists, real estate agents, accountants, regulatory experts, banking and financial services firms, and others used to conduct covert transactions for money laundering in all of these money laundering destinations.
Additionally, these syndicates have helped traffickers launder money more easily over time. They safeguard the assets of those who launder money while opening doors for lucrative real estate, banking, and luxury goods ventures,” he continued.According to the executive director of the TIB, money laundering occasionally occurs by taking advantage of differences in the policies of the relevant countries and even by offering investments in exchange for citizenship.
According to him, in the absence of a policy deficiency, lax enforcement of the law contributes to the creation of a “paradise” for those who assist in money laundering, which in turn promotes money siphoning off of Bangladesh.
“TIB believes that Bangladesh bears primary responsibility for the prevention, control, and repatriation of money laundering proceeds.”It did, however, note that in cases where money was invested through smuggling from Bangladesh and so contributed to the economic development of those nations, the affected countries or areas bore equal responsibility.
According to the TIB announcement, the Executive Director of the organization urged the governments of relevant nations, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, and Singapore, to offer Bangladesh all the assistance it needs to recover the money that has been laundered.