Scrap gold is being smuggled into Bangladesh from several Middle Eastern countries. In Dhaka’s Tantibazar, the gold is converted into bars and then trafficked to India. The transactions, conducted through the informal hundi system, are deposited into bank accounts under shell companies. As a result, Bangladesh has become an international route for gold smuggling. Locally, influential groups control the smuggling routes. Reviewing the bank accounts of several private entities, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) found these details. Experts believe that unless gold smuggling is curbed, the expansion of the border-based informal economy cannot be stopped.
According to CID data, several syndicates centered around Tantibazar have been conducting large financial transactions for years through bank accounts opened under shell companies. Among them are accounts held by Inox Fashion, Bhai Bhai Enterprise, Zaman Enterprise, and Noha Enterprise, which record massive sums of unreported transactions. CID reports identified Manindra Nath Biswas, a Tantibazar businessman, as one of the key figures in the country’s international gold smuggling network. He collects scrap gold from passengers arriving from the Middle East through special connections and brings it to Tantibazar to be melted. The scrap is then converted into gold bars and trafficked to India through the Satkhira border. In return, payments are sometimes made through hundi, and in some cases, through weapons and drugs.
CID Special Superintendent of Police Jasim Uddin Khan told Bonik Barta, “Manindra Nath Biswas opened bank accounts under the names of several shell companies and conducted transactions worth BDT 6.08 billion. By transferring money and converting it through hundi, he engaged in luxury spending, money laundering, and purchased assets under anonymous ownership. These are clearly punishable offenses under the Money Laundering Prevention Act.”
Manindra Nath Biswas is not the only one. At least two dozen traders like him are smuggling gold from Bangladesh to India through illegal channels. Another such businessman is Shyam Ghosh. CID investigations revealed that he is a gold trader who began his career working at his father’s hotel in Sutrapur, Dhaka. Later, while employed at various gold shops, he started buying and selling illegally obtained gold without proper documentation. Through this trade, he amassed considerable wealth while concealing the sources of his income.
The CID investigation further revealed that Shyam Ghosh used the money earned from gold smuggling to buy multiple apartments and shops in Dhaka. These include three shops in Block C on the sixth floor of Jamuna Future Park and a restaurant called Indian Domestic Spice. He also owns a flat on the fifth floor of Babuli Star City building in Waizghat and shares ownership of a flat on the sixth floor of Swarnachapa Bhaban in Swamibagh with his brother. In addition, he owns a jewelry store named Nandan Jewelers on Level 5, Block B of Bashundhara City Shopping Complex.
Another gold trader in Tantibazar, Tapas Malakar, has also been accused of regularly smuggling gold from Bangladesh to India. To launder the proceeds, he used bank accounts opened under several shell companies. One such entity is Joya Fashion, a small shop on the fourth floor of Bashundhara City that sells Indian clothing. Despite limited sales, the shop’s bank account has shown regular large-scale transactions. When the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) of Bangladesh Bank began investigating the source of these transactions, Tapas Malakar came under surveillance. The CID later launched a detailed probe, revealing information about the smuggling activities by Malakar and his wife, Monti Malakar. The couple has been regularly involved in smuggling gold through the Satkhira border. They were previously arrested by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) with illegal gold and were even jailed. The Malakars own three apartments in Dhaka, two shops in Bashundhara City, and another in Jamuna Future Park. Despite these assets, Tapas Malakar has no tax file, and although his wife has one, it has not been updated in three years.
When asked about the large transactions in Joya Fashion’s account, Tapas Malakar told Bonik Barta, “I have a gold business in Tantibazar. But there is no bank account linked to that business. The money from there is deposited into Joya Fashion’s bank account. Besides, at different times, the bank account of Joya Fashion has also been used for transactions by neighboring businesses.”
CID’s Financial Crime Unit Special Superintendent of Police Mohammad Abul Kalam Azad is overseeing the investigation into the gold smuggling case. Speaking to Bonik Barta, he said, “The investigation into Joya Fashion is in its final stage. At the same time, action has already been taken against another gold trader, Shyam Ghosh. We also have information on several other Tantibazar gold traders involved in such smuggling. Legal measures will be taken after the investigation is completed.”
Meanwhile, according to Indian media reports, weak security has made Bangladesh and Myanmar major routes for smuggling gold into India. The annual demand for gold in India is 800,000 kilograms, of which 80,000 to 90,000 kilograms are trafficked into the country each year. High import duties make the illegal trade quite profitable. Over the past five years, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has seized around 725 kilograms of gold from border areas. During the same period, the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate seized 840 kilograms of gold from the country’s three international airports. Dhaka Customs House alone confiscated 436 kilograms from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) in the past two years. In total, these three agencies seized 1,164 kilograms of gold in the last two years. However, officials believe the amount trafficked far exceeds the seizures.
Several gold traders have been accused of involvement in smuggling. However, the Bangladesh Jewellers’ Association (BAJUS) said it has no information linking them to the cases. Masudur Rahman, Chairman of the BAJUS Standing Committee on Pricing and Price Monitoring, told Bonik Barta. “I do not personally know these jewellers. We have no information about their alleged involvement in smuggling or their arrests. Our work is mainly focused on issues related to the retail jewelry sector.”
According to traders, the global gold market has become volatile amid U.S.-China tensions, driving prices sharply higher. In Bangladesh, the price is now close to BDT 200,000 per bhori (11.664 grams). Rising prices have reduced domestic consumption, but paradoxically, demand for gold among smugglers has surged. In recent months, several individuals have been arrested along with large consignments of smuggled gold.
Data from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) show that 41 kilograms 772 grams of gold were seized at the border in 2020. The following year, 50 kilograms 433 grams were confiscated. Seizures rose to 194 kilograms 993 grams in 2022 and 260 kilograms 567 grams in 2023. In 2024, the figure stood at 131 kilograms 424 grams. As of August 2025, 44 kilograms 891 grams of gold had been seized during smuggling attempts.
Lt. Col. SM Shafiqur Rahman, BGB’s Director of Operations, said the force is taking a hard line against border smuggling. Speaking to Bonik Barta, he said, “BGB has been playing an effective role in preventing all types of smuggling at the borders, including gold. Additional patrols are being conducted in high-risk areas, and intelligence surveillance is ongoing. Based on intelligence reports, regular patrols are being carried out in border regions. In the past year alone, we recovered 122.65 kilograms of gold worth BDT 1.95 billion, which has been deposited into the state treasury. We also handed over 80 smugglers to the police in connection with gold smuggling cases.”