New transfer pricing monitoring unit to detect illicit outflows, says Atiur
Bangladesh authorities are working with counterparts abroad to recover proceeds of corruption (‘stolen assets’), in terms of the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Dr. Atiur Rahman has said.
The central bank chief disclosed this while speaking at an event title Addressing the Linkage Illicit Flows and Domestic Resource Mobilisation held at the National Press Club in Washington DC on Friday, according to a press statement, issued by the BB Saturday.
BB governor Dr. Rahman was panelist along with president of African Development Bank, Dutch trade minister and former vice president of Guatemala at the event, organised by the Global Financial Integrity (GFI), the statement added.
The governor agreed to GFI finding that Illicit Outflows (IOs) were more than Official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI) put together which is draining much of the investment resources.
A new transfer pricing monitoring unit in the National Board of Revenue (NBR) is monitoring trade transactions to detect IOs through mis-invoicing, he added.
The central bank chief also said the authorities are probing into legality and tax-compliance in the Swiss bank deposits and buying of Malaysian second homes by Bangladesh nationals reported in the media.
“The BB hosting the BFIU and other Bangladesh authorities implementing AML CFT laws and regulations will engage eagerly in initiatives of developing the needed new cross border cooperation frameworks,” the governor noted.
Netherlands Queen Maxima lauds BB’s financial inclusion campaign
Queen Maxima of the Netherlands has appreciated Bangladesh’s campaign for financial inclusion and expressed her eagerness to visit Bangladesh early next year.
The Queen expressed her observations at a bi-lateral meeting with BB governor Friday morning at the IMF Head Quarters in the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings 2015 in Washington, DC.
She also praised the role of BB in promoting mobile financial services and other inclusive financial activities in Bangladesh.
She was recollecting her meeting with Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina in September last and commended her drive for inclusive growth while the Queen was invited to visit Bangladesh by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
Queen Maxima, a Special Adviser of UN Secretary General on Financial Inclusion, hoped to see some of these innovations in the area of financial inclusion in Bangladesh.
The BB governor lauded her role in promoting financial inclusion and shared with her some of the innovative examples of financial inclusion in Bangladesh, according to the statement.
