A senior official of Bangladesh Bank has publicly accused Governor Dr. Ahsan H. Mansur of โautocratic behaviourโ in a detailed Facebook post, highlighting a series of controversial decisions and raising fresh questions about secrecy surrounding the printing of bank notes and approval of large loans.
On Tuesday, A.K.M. Masum Billah, president of the Bangladesh Bank Officers Welfare Council and additional director of the Foreign Exchange Policy Department-1, posted a lengthy status on Facebook. Hours earlier, he had been transferred to the bankโs Rangpur officeโa move widely seen as punitive after he and two other council leaders were served show-cause notices.
In the post, Masum Billah claimed that after the Finance Ministry rejected proposed amendments to the Bangladesh Bank Order, Governor Mansur suddenly summoned the Officers Welfare Councilโdespite repeatedly ignoring earlier requests for meetings on staff welfare issues.
During the meeting, the governor expressed strong displeasure against the interim governmentโs finance adviser and urged the council to organise press conferences and protest rallies against him. The council complied, holding a press conference and a rally demanding the Adviserโs resignation for one day at least, in the name of central bank autonomy.
Masum Billah further alleged that immediately after the national election, the Governor called an emergency board meeting on just one dayโs notice. The second item on the agenda was the approval of licenses for digital banks, even though the other seven agenda items were not urgent. The council responded by holding another urgent press conference, criticising the governor’s unilateral decisions and appealing to the new government not to issue any digital bank licenses before taking office.
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Following the press conference, the governor issued show-cause notices to the council president, general secretary, and one director, demanding explanations within 10 days. Yet within a day of the deadline, all three officials were transferred out of DhakaโMasum Billah to Rangpur, and the others to Barishal and Bogura.
The Facebook post also listed several other allegations against Governor Mansur:
– Purchase of a luxury Toyota Alphard vehicle for Tk2.08 crore, exceeding the governmentโs maximum ceiling of Tk1.69 crore.
– Buying the new car even though 10 years had not passed since the previous official vehicle was purchased.
– Irregularities in the management and supply of medicines at the central bankโs medical centre.
– Pushing ahead with digital bank licenses without government approval.
Masum Billah described these actions as clear examples of โautocratic behaviourโ and questioned whether the council should have remained silent.
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Added Layer Of Controversy
Critics within the bank have gone further, accusing Governor Mansur of maintaining undue secrecy around major monetary decisionsโparticularly the printing of fresh banknotes and the approval of large-scale loans.
In late 2024 and early 2025, Bangladesh Bank injected Tk22,500 crore into six troubled banks by printing new notesโa move the governor publicly admitted at a press conference but provided limited details on the exact timing, distribution mechanism, and long-term inflationary consequences. Officials claim key decisions on the scale and timing of note printing were made without full disclosure to the board or the public, raising fears that the real extent of money creation was deliberately downplayed to avoid public backlash.
Similarly, concerns have been voiced over the opaque handling of large loans. While the governor has publicly announced stricter scrutiny for loans above Tk50 crore, insiders allege that several high-value facilities were approved or restructured with minimal transparency, sometimes bypassing standard board oversight. Critics argue this secrecy has allowed potential irregularities to persist under the guise of โreforms,โ even as ordinary depositors continue to suffer from liquidity crises and eroded confidence in the banking system.
The post ends with a strong appeal: โWorking at Bangladesh Bank is like practising our faith for us. Protesting injustice is our moral duty. Down with autocracyโlet Bangladesh Bank be free.โ
Bangladesh Bank has so far issued no official response to the allegations or the transfers.
The episode has deepened internal divisions at the central bank and raised broader questions about governance, transparency, and accountability under Governor Mansurโs leadership at a time when the banking sector remains fragile.
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